#NowPlaying: RBM Does Karaoke

We’ve got another playlist up our sleeves, and it’s one of our aces in the hole. Get ready to sing your heart out, world! This month we were inspired by James Corden’s “Carpool Karaoke” and decided to release a karaoke playlist of our own, featuring your favorite songs to sing to. Crank the volume, hold onto your steering wheel and sing along to these great tunes. Don’t forget to follow us on Spotify so you know exactly when our next playlist rolls out.

“At 1am, when you’ve already had a few drinks and you should probably be going home, that’s the perfect time for Karaoke. You set it up, thinking, “this’ll be fun! I’m actually a pretty good singer!” And then you start singing. You realize you are not, and have never been, a good singer. But it doesn’t matter, because you’re out with your friends, having a good time, and you know you won’t regret it in the morning.”

– Kendra Tallman, Email Marketing Associate at Red Branch Media (@kendra_rbm)

Missed our other playlists? Check them out here:

• Brancher Top 5
• Red Branch Holiday Playlist
• Motivation for the New Year
• Love & Heartbreak
• Guilty Pleasures
• Nostalgia Overload
• Instrumental Focus for Writers & Coders
• Summer Poolside Playlist
• Your Favorite Covers
• Welcome to the Team

The History: When it All Started

Karaoke isn’t that old, and you might be surprised to find out that it began about 40-50 years ago. The article, “The Origins of Karaoke,” explains that “Karaoke originated in Kobe, Japan in the early 1970’s, and the first karaoke machine is credited to Daisuke Inoue. Providing musical entertainment at parties had long been a Japanese custom, and the karaoke machine allowed everyone to participate through the use of an instrumental track of popular songs with the vocals remove, a microphone/amp, and a screen to display lyrics.” That was a pretty adventurous and creative idea, and it wasn’t until just a few years later that it became a hit here. The article goes on to say that, “Drunk public singing, as it turns out, is super fun, and the trend soon spread, making its way all through Japan and Asia, and eventually into North America and Europe in the 80’s.” Thus, the love of Karaoke was born. Cheers to you, Japan!

Our Inspiration: “Carpool Karaoke” by James Corden

The hit internet sensation recently has been brought to us by James Corden in his series, “Carpool Karaoke.” This amazing phenomenon features James picking up a random musical artist to take the “carpool” lane in LA, and while they’re on the road, James will load up some of the artist’s hits to sing along to together. In an article from Entertainment Weekly titled, “James Corden explains the origin of Carpool Karaoke,” it all began “…as a sketch for Britain’s Comic Relief charity, in which Corden picked up Wham!’s George Michael and drove around singing with him. Corden found the experience “joyful” and realized it could easily be transferred to the celebrity-filled carpool lanes of Los Angeles when he took over The Late Late Show.” According to the article it didn’t take off right away, but soon after Mariah Carey’s episode, “…the bit slowly started gathering steam as it racked up famous guests one after another. These days, Carpool Karaoke is one of the most popular sketches in late-night TV…” That’s quite the turnaround! And we love watching each episode that airs.

Haven’t watched “Carpool Karaoke” yet? Check out the YouTube channel, here!

The Benefits: How it’s Good for Your Health

Not only is singing karaoke a fun and exciting experience, it’s good for your body. According to the Ambient-Mixer Blog article, “9 Awesome Benefits From Singing Karaoke,” karaoke benefits the body by:

• • • Stimulating the Brain
    • Relieving Stress
    • Aiding in Expressing Emotions & Feelings
    • Helping You to Breathe Better
    • Pushing You to Showcase Your Talent
    • Improving Your Memory
    • Building Confidence
    • Letting You Socialize

Those are some great benefits your body could use daily. Not to mention that it isn’t a burdensome task. Go ahead, let loose with our playlist! There’s a song in there you’re sure to love singing to.

Did you know music can inspire your creativity? Find out how, here!

How To Find Us & Follow Us on Spotify

There are a few ways to find us on Spotify. First, you’ll need a Spotify account. You can do that by going to www.spotify.com and creating a free account. Unless ads drive you nuts, a free account is all you’ll need. After you’ve got your account, go to our page and click follow. By following us, you’ll get email notifications each time we put out a new playlist. We’ll be creating fresh lists for you each month, so you can listen to them as soon as we publish them! Now go download the desktop application for your computer, the app for your phone or stream music online by taking a listen to our playlist here.

Karaoke is a wonderful phenomenon, and it’s an experience that sticks with you for life. Load up our playlist in your home or car and sing to your favorite songs. From old to new, there’s a song for you. Don’t be afraid, once you get going you’ll feel awesome — AND reap some great health benefits!

Kyle Christensen

Kyle is the Brand Director at Red Branch Media.

Kyle leads our Graphic Design Department at Red Branch Media. His ability to manage incoming tasks, collaborate with the design team, hit deadlines and keep our file storage system well-organized has helped to shape the design department clients love today. While he’s away from the branch, he spends his time playing drums, video games, cranking the latest emo, pop-punk and screamo songs on Spotify, drinking local Omaha brews, and enjoying life with his wife. Kyle has a BASA with a Concentration in Graphic Design and a Minor in Art History from UNO.