Oct 05, 2026 10:10pm IST
From ‘The Love Hypothesis’ to ‘Off Campus,’ Karaoke Scenes Are Sparking New Romance and a Second Life for Old Hits
There’s a reason Ella Bright performing “Cherry Pie” in the karaoke scene from “Off Campus” became one of the YA (young adult) romance series’ most viral moments. Everyone has had a rockstar/popstar fantasy of performing on stage while people look on in awe. There’s power in a song sung well; it makes you look talented and awe-inspiring, almost invincible, like a God. But even when performed imperfectly, it can be a soul-baring exercise that makes someone fall in love with your quirkiness and courage to, as Natasha Bedingfield once sang, “release your inhibitions” before an audience.
Why Every New YA Film and Series Feature a Karaoke Scene
Romance has always loved a good karaoke scene, whether it is Cameron Diaz massacring Burt Bacharach’s “I Just Don’t Know What to Do With Myself” in “My Best Friend’s Wedding,” Katherine Heigl and James Marsden impromptu breaking into “Benny and the Jets” in “27 Dresses,” or Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens’ Troy and Gabriella having their meet-cute in “High School Musical.” More recently, there have been some truly memorable karaoke scenes in cinema, such as Emily Blunt crooning “Against All Odds” in “The Fall Guy” or the cathartic moment in "The Greatest Hits" when Lucy Boynton and Justin H. Min awkwardly sing 10CC’s 1975 song, “I’m Not In Love.”
The current wave of YA and NA (New Adult) romances has centered, among other traits, the willingness to be vulnerable before the ones you love through dancing, singing, reciting poetry or even creating art. It’s no wonder most films and series of the genre have featured a karaoke scene, in which the protagonists or supporting characters indulge in a song, which then becomes a pivotal moment of character or plot development.
To borrow from the earlier “Off Campus” example, when Bright’s Hannah, a singer with confidence issues, performs “Cherry Pie” at karaoke night, her then-fake boyfriend, Garrett (Belmont Cameli), realizes how incredible Hannah is when she isn’t nervous, and falls for her. It’s also a major moment for Garrett’s ice hockey teammate and best friend, John Logan (Antonio Cipriano), who realizes that he is seriously into Hannah. A similar moment occurs in “People We Meet On Vacation,” when Poppy’s impromptu karaoke moment at the airport singing “Hang With Me” by Robyn reminds Alex of how much he missed her.
Several films and series over the last couple of years have used karaoke as an effective narrative device.
‘Head Over Heels’ in ‘The Love Hypothesis’
In “The Love Hypothesis,” a montage portraying Olive and Adam’s growing closeness is set to Olive’s best friend, Anh, and her boyfriend, Jeremy, doing karaoke to “Head Over Heels” by The Go-Go’s. It’s symbolic that not the leads but the supporting characters are the ones singing, because Olive’s fake-dating Adam is turning up real feelings and bringing her out of her shell, while also letting Anh and Jeremy date openly without worrying about hurting Olive. More importantly, the “Star Wars” fanfic that inspired Ali Hazelwood’s novel of the same name was titled “Head Over Feet,” which itself is a nod to an Alanis Morissette song.
‘Mr. Brightside’ in ‘Crew Girl’
In Netflix’s latest YA sports drama, Miku Martineau’s Teagan Tao earns the all-boys rowing crew’s respect, even winning over her chief nemesis, Josh Regis (Samuel Braun), during his disastrous birthday in Episode 3, “Flight Crew.” At a karaoke party, Teagan suggests they turn the night around, and Josh pulls her in to smash The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside.” Again, it’s a great moment to underline the love triangle, as Cam (Kyle Clark), who has been trying to ask Teagan out, gets jealous of their growing closeness.
‘Summer Nights’ in The Summer I Turned Pretty’
One of the biggest YA phenomena of recent times, “The Summer I Turned Pretty” also features a karaoke moment in its very first season. At a party in Episode 3, birthday girl Belly (Lola Tung) arrives with her boyfriend Cameron (David Iacono), and Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno) decides to karaoke “Summer Nights” from “Grease” to tease them. Though Cam eventually joins in, Belly gets awkward and leaves.
‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ in ‘Red, White & Royal Blue’
In the spirit of being one’s true, happy self, the scene where Nicholas Galitzine’s Prince Henry belts out Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” at a local Texas bar like no one’s watching, but Taylor Zakhar Perez's Alex is watching with that look of love on his face, is possibly one of the best moments from “Red, White & Royal Blue.”
‘Yellow’ in ‘My Oxford Year’
The Netflix romance features several Coldplay songs. But when Cory Mylchreest’s Jamie Davenport gets up on stage and sings Coldplay’s “Yellow” to Sofia Carson’s Anna, it sets the tone for the bittersweet film.
‘No Scrubs’ in ‘The Last Sunrise’
Prime Video’s “The Last Sunrise” takes a leaf out of the “How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days” playbook and lets its heroine, Ry, use karaoke to send a message to the hot Spanish local, Julián (Fernando Líndez), who ghosted her. When he crashes her girls’ night out, she gets drunk, gets up on stage, and sings “No Scrubs” by TLC at him.
Interestingly, Maia Reficco’s rendition of the American girl group’s lead single from their third album, “FanMail,” has given the original a second wind. The song re-entered several UK and US charts, including Billboard, 27 years after it was first released in February 1999.
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When Karaoke Scenes Gave a Second Life to Old Classics
“No Scrubs” isn’t the only song that karaoke-d its way back into the spotlight. Earlier this year, “Project Hail Mary” also had a viral karaoke scene that generated a similar fresh buzz for an older song. Sandra Hüller’s straight-laced Eva Stratt surprises everyone by singing “Sign of the Times” by Harry Styles at karaoke. It’s an emotional moment for the team, including Ryan Gosling’s Ryland Grace, and the lyrics perfectly herald the end of one life and the beginning of another. In fact, for the nine-year-old song, it became just that—a re-entry into the global charts.
In the era of TikTok videos and Instagram reels, it’s hard to predict which song, riding a trend wave or pop-culture moment, could suddenly resurface. In 2023, “Saltburn” made two decades-old songs go viral, including the 1987 Pet Shop Boys number “Rent,” from an uncomfortable karaoke scene with Oliver (Barry Keoghan) and Felix (Jacob Elordi). Similarly, Paul Mescal’s “Aftersun” (2023) featured his on-screen daughter, Sophie (Frankie Corio), crooning “Losing My Religion,” leading to a spike in this early 90s R.E.M. classic’s streaming numbers among a younger audience.
It isn't always a typical karaoke scene either. Natasha Bedingfield’s 2004 single, “Unwritten,” got a new lease of life when Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney sang it in the romantic comedy, “Anyone But You.” It was woven into the end credits as well. While the film revived the rom-com era, “Unwritten” also had quite the second wind.
Whether played for easy laughs, awkward moments or mic-drop realizations (Kareena Kapoor Khan singing “Aa Jaane Jaan” in “Jaane Jaan”), karaoke scenes have historically been a fun addition to films and episodes, and definitely deserve their moment in the spotlight.
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