How To Host A Karaoke Night At Home: Your Go-To Checklist
A night of singing and merrymaking is a wonderful way to throw a party for friends and relatives. It is also a welcoming and friendly setting to host work colleagues who can let loose, mingle and have icebreaking sessions outside of the office space. So, next time you are thinking of hosting an event, plan a killer karaoke night where each of your guests can take the stage and perform for the assembled crowd.
You will need tons of food and drink for a night like this so make sure you have a fully stocked bar with cocktails and mocktails at the ready! Along with that, queuing songs and making a list of requests is just as important to have a smooth flow and avoid plunging the party into chaos.
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From equipment to organising the line-up to serving delicious drinks, read on below for a quick guide on the essentials for hosting a karaoke night at home:
Prepare Equipment
What you need for a karaoke evening is either a karaoke machine or app, a couple of mics and a wireless connection to your TV or laptop. If you have good speakers, that is a bonus! Choose karaoke apps according to the genre of songs you have picked or, you can find karaoke music on YouTube and connect this to your TV. Make sure you plug-in and test drive all the equipment before the party starts to avoid hiccups.
Pick A Theme
Since your guests will sing at least a couple of dozen songs at the party, a theme would work so well to set the mood. You can choose anything like romantic or country pop or 1970s Bollywood, essentially a mood with plenty of songs to choose from. Another fun theme could be to pick an artist or a band or songs from a certain actor’s movies. You can ask your friends and colleagues to dress-up as the artist or actor whose song they are performing for an added pizzaz.
Choose An App
Choosing an app is important because this will determine the quality of karaoke sound and the availability of songs for an excellent line-up. Apps have one-day or one-week-long subscription offers too, so you can pick from an array of songs and make sure every guest gets a chance to sing.
Make A Playlist
Once you have downloaded your chosen app, make a long playlist of songs and cue them up so there are no awkward silences during the party. You can ask your guests for recommendations in advance or take requests as soon as they arrive so you have a line-up ready before the singing starts.
Karaoke Cocktails
Your guests are going to require lots of drinks to sip on especially if they are singing and swaying to other people’s performances. Choose cocktails according to the evening’s theme or simply serve karaoke specials like Harmony Hurricane or a Melody Martini — basically classic cocktails with a musical twist. Keep a bottle of Gordon’s The Original London Dry Gin and of Smirnoff Triple Distilled Vodka handy along with a decanter of Johnnie Walker Red Label to mix your drinks.
Potluck Dinner
To make a karaoke night an informal, homely affair, host a potluck where every guest has to bring one dish to the table! This can range from soups and toasts to dips and chips as well as casseroles, sandwiches, pastas and good old chaat! Make one guest in charge of desserts because you would need a sugar fix to be highly energetic for all that singing!
Concluding Notes…
A karaoke night is a fun way to host a mixed group of colleagues and friends. Choose karaoke apps which have a wide range of songs and pick a theme to give the evening a bit of a country or Bollywood drama vibe!
