For years, karaoke was often dismissed as the quirky stepchild of the music streaming world. Fun at parties, sure, but hardly a serious channel for artist discovery or fan engagement. But the tide is turning. With the explosion of popularity of private karaoke rooms, mobile karaoke apps, and even in-home singing setups, karaoke is experiencing a renaissance, especially among younger audiences.

What was once seen as a niche activity is now a major cultural trend. And this shift presents a powerful opportunity: karaoke is becoming a legitimate, untapped distribution and marketing channel for artists and labels.

How WAP became a karaoke classic

A great example of karaoke’s promotional power is the viral journey of Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s – WAP. When Singa launched its Singa Originals initiative, we included “WAP” as one of the featured tracks and gave it a heavy promotional push, made possible through our partnership with Warner Music.

The results were instant. Seemingly overnight, thousands of people were belting out WAP in karaoke rooms and bars across the globe. It became a phenomenon.

A staff member at World of Karaoke in Amsterdam noted,

“It was quite funny listening to people singing ‘WAP’ all of a sudden, it became one of the most popular songs over night.”

But the funny moments also carried a serious insight: karaoke can drive real, measurable exposure for songs, especially when combined with targeted promotion within the karaoke ecosystem.

Karaoke success for indie artists too

It’s not just major label acts seeing results. Indie artists have long benefited from karaoke exposure, sometimes in ways they couldn’t through traditional streaming platforms.

Before Singa Originals even launched, bands like Poets of the Fall found success by making their music available on Singa. For years, their fans couldn’t find a way to sing their songs in karaoke settings. But once added, those songs started gaining traction.

For independent artists who often struggle with discoverability, karaoke offers a fresh, underutilized way to get in front of new listeners, not just passively, but actively, as their fans can introduce their songs in from of friends in karaoke rooms or on the stage in front of crowds.

Singa a new kind of music streaming platform

At Singa, we’ve witnessed firsthand how karaoke is evolving into a new kind of streaming platform, one that goes beyond passive listening and into full-blown performance.

With over 1,200 venues and hundreds of thousands of registered at-home singers, Singa enables fans not just to hear music, but to embody it, perform it, and share it. That level of interaction drives deep, emotional fan engagement.

And it’s not just happening in karaoke bars. People are recording themselves singing at home, in karaoke rooms, or at parties, and sharing those videos across TikTok, Instagram, and other platforms. This creates an organic, viral layer of music promotion. Every shared performance is another form of user-generated content that helps songs reach new audiences.

Learn more about Singa Originals or how to get your artists music into Singa here.