Ah, Independence Day, how I love it. And really, what´s not to love? Hot dogs and hamburgers grilling while kids work up an appetite in the pool. Groups of friends out fishing on thier annual 4th of July camping trip. College kids thowing back a few beers as they claim their spot on the beach to catch the fireworks. Old couples remembering the good old days when people really knew the value of their country´s day of birth. It´s a beautiful holiday in the good old US of A, and there isn´t really much to complain about… except maybe the music.

Say what you will, but our country´s patriotic tunes aren´t the best in the book. Then again, I guess its hard to find a national anthem with even a little bit of style anywhere in the world. From the Star spangled banner to, yes classics, but still all together way too cheesy songs, like Proud to be an American, I´d have to say the only thing to complain about on the 4th of July is the lack of musical selection.

Sure, I could switch the station from some routine version of My country tis of thee and listen to Born in the USA if I want to get down a little this Independence Day, but I decided on something better. Because even though some of the USA´s most patriotic tunes may also be some of the most cringe worthy, I still would like to belt out the lyrics to God bless the USA while the sound of exploding fireworks drown out my horrible voice. Luckily enough, our country has produced some fine musical masterminds who have turned these banner waving USA pride classics into some truly soulful music worth downloading to your itunes.

Here are Red Karaoke´s top choices for renditions as far as USA pride go:

Aretha Franklin´s soulful, though widely debated, My country tis of thee, performed at one of the most historical and profound moments in American History, Barack Obama´s inaguration. I don´t care how old she is or what anyone thinks, Aretha is the wo-man when it comes to heart thrashing soul and this made me want to cry (in the good way).

When you´ve got it, you´ve got it, and Marvin Gaye has got it. He can apparently turn any song into a let´s get it on seduction scene, even the Star spangled banner at the 1983 NBA All star Game.

All American Bruce Springsteen´s moving performance of This Land is Your Land renders this song practically unrecognizable when compared to the original, a plus in my book.

Of course I couldn´t make it through this whole list without naming at list one divalicious pop star´s performance, and though Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey certainly have delivered their fair share of heartfelt superbowl and commemorative patriotic performances, Celine Dion wins with her rendition of God Bless America.

Make that two divas. Beyonce is all over Youtube with all kinds of R&B versions of these patriotic classics, mostly having to do with Obama´s inaguration this year, but her album release of Proud to be american tops my list.

Maybe I´m biased due to his balad to my home state of Georgia, but anything Ray Charles touches is gold, including America the beautiful, which just barely challenges Georgia on my mind in my own heart.

Of course, Red Karaoke has its own collection of talented singers who put their own spin on these patriotic classics. Check out the forum, pick your favorite I love the USA tune and share it with the rest of Red Karaoke to celebrate this year.

Happy 4th of July!

In honor of the King and his glorious career at the top of pop, I´ve selected 5 of my favorite renditions here on Red Karaoke of some of Michael Jackson´s classics. Take a look at some of Red Karaoke User´s best performances.

First on my list is Nabe, a user of Red Karaoke Japan, who recorded a beautiful rendition of Ben. Michael Jackson performed this hit as a teenager for Motown in 1972. Although at that time the single reached #1 for one week in the USA, making it his first top single as a solo artists, the song received even greater popularity after it appeared on his album of the same name, winning a Golden Globe for Best Song and nomination for an Academy Award of Best Original Song.

Ben - Vote for my rendition!

Next is an MJ classic, Billie Jean performed in an original style by Drizzy. The single, based on a true life experience, was released on the album Thriller and became one of the best selling records of 1983. Considered one of history´s most recolutionary song, Billie Jean recieved numerous awards, including induction into the Music Video Hall of Fame and helped Thriller become one of the highest sellings albums of all time. Without a doubt, this is one of the songs that sealed Jackson´s fame as a pop icon.

Billie Jean - Vote for my rendition!

After the death of Michael Jackson last week, many Red Karaoke users decided to honor him by singing some of his most moving songs. One of the best results of these efforts was Milesdestiny´s rendition of Heal the World.For Micheal Jackson, who has the honor of having donated more money to charities than any other celebrity world wide, Heal the World is what he considers his proudest musical achievement and also the theme song of his charitable foundation of the same name.

Heal the world - Vote for my rendition!

Another great effort in response to Jackson´s death here on Red Karaoke was Sophia83´s heart breaking rendition of You are not alone.The single, released in 1995, was originally written and coproduced by R. Kelly, and was Michael Jackson´s last number one single in the USA, a moving single for him in response to many troubles in his personal life and in dealing with the media.

You are not alone - Vote for my rendition!

And last but not least, a very creative and great rendition of We are the world by Ichimuan, accompanied by a fun video. We are the world was written by Jackson with the help of Lionel Richie, and performed by 45 major stars in an effort to help raise money as aid to Africa in 1985.

We Are The World - Vote for my rendition!

Michael Jackson is one of the top recorded artists here on Red Karaoke. Go check out the rest of Red Karaoke User´s great renditions, or record your own Micheal Jackson karaoke in honor of the king and share it with everyone in the forum.

Red Karaoke is a constantly growing and changing site. With over 130,000 karaokes and more every single day, we have decided to release a brand new karaoke song directory! The Karaoke Directory is simple, but made for the convenience of users to find lyrics, new songs and some of the most popular material on Red Karaoke.

The first part of the new directory is a search for songs and their lyrics alphebetically, as can be seen below.

The second part which is alot of fun and can be great for users to see what people are enjoying here at Red Karaoke is the Weekly Top. The karaoke recordings that people are listening to the most and the songs people are singing the most will appear here, changing every week and helping users find new favorites and see themselves at the top!

Finally we have a section for the latest uploaded karaoke by the Red Karaoke staff and users alike.

So check out the new Karaoke Directory and find a karaoke to sing your heart out!

Yesterday, 25th of July, The King of Pop passed away. Michael Jackson was found in his home suffering from severe heart complications and was moved from his house in Bell Air to one hospital, but the efforts of the doctors weren’t enought to reanimate him. Jackson was pronounced dead at 2:26 pm Pacific time.

It’s a hard day for the world of the music. Since he was a child, Jackson has been a mass idol, at the beggining alongside his brothers, The Jacksons five, and later in his own incredible solo career. He won 405 awards for his music, including 10 grammys. Michael Jackson sold 750 million records, making him the number one selling musical artist of all time. Jackson also has the honor of having been the most charitable celebrity ever, donationg over more than 300 million dollars to nonprofit organizations.

So, in honour of Michael Jackson here are some of his best videos.

This week Red Karaoke debuted a handful of new artists, Azure Ray being the band I was most stoked and ready to whip out a microphone for among the New Releases. Azure Ray is comprised of Orenda Fink and Maria Taylor, Alabama natives who started playing in Athens, Georgia, well known for a sweet little music scene that spit out artists like REM and the B-52´s (just to name a couple off the endless list). Fink and Taylor went about producing truly beautiful music, owning to a genre somewhere in the neighborhood of alternative folk with intimately inspirational lyrics, between 2001 and 2004, working with Saddle Creek Records in the latter part of their run.

Fink and Taylor took a hiatus for a few years after 2004 to work on their own a bit and collaborate with other group projects. Now after 5 years, the ladies are touring a but around the US before releasing their fourth album sometime in July under Saddle Creek Records.

Azure Ray has been featured on several well known soundtracks. Their single Sleep can be heard on The Devil Wears Prada and Rise was played on the popular HBO series Sex Feet Under. Fink and Taylor have also collaborated with many other groups, including Moby, whom they cowrote and sung with on the single Great Escape off his album 18. The vocals are serene and peaceful, though it´s their lyrics that really make this group incredible.

Sing one of the new Azure Ray karaokes and share your rendition in the forum.

Mariah Carey´s recent single Obsessed from her upcoming album Memoirs of an Imperfect Album has everyone from fans to haters alike blogging like crazy people, whether supporting Carey´s apparent strike at Eminem or debating whether or not she is going to make chart history all over again with her new album.

Obsessed, which was released on June 16^th for her adoring fans, is definitely aimed at one of Carey´s enemies, and while the diva may have quite an entourage of stalkers to choose from, it´s all too obvious from the single´s lyrics that it´s a response to Eminem´s From Bagpipes to Baghdad, which targeted hubby Nick Cannon and suggested a more than just comrades in the music business relationship between Slim Shady and Carey.  While neither party´s publicists are commenting on the long standing blog fueled controversy between the three celebrities, it certainly has created the obsession Carey could be talking about.

Still, the question that really matters in relation to Obsessed, as well as the new album due to drop August 25^th, just within the cutoff of eligibility for the Grammies, isn´t whether or not Carey is trying to get sassy with Eminem, but whether or not Carey will finally win a Grammy for best album after only a few Grammy wins and a horde of nominations over her superstar career, and whether this single will get her one step closer to making more Billboard Chart history.

Touch My Body, Carey´s last megahit that no one could get enough of, was completely Mariah Carey all over the vocal range style with a fresh let´s get down in the club feel that gave Mimi her 18^th chart topper, breaking Elvis Presley´s long standing record and bringing her two steps closer to beating The Beatles record of 20 number one singles. And while The Dream, who collaborated on Touch my body, worked with Carey on the entirety of Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, promising that not veer away from the style fans love Carey for, the reviewers of Obsessed have been humming a different tune.

While, LA Times applauded that Obsessed was a bit more ¨lively than earlier work with The Dream,¨ but went on to accuse the duo of going against Carey´s twitter4 promises of the album being, ¨Completely me, ¨ describing it as ¨more anonymous Carey than ever before¨ and ¨yet again sells out the songbird to her producers.¨ Just one of the many critics that haven´t been too pleased with the watered down Mariah and auto-tune sound.

Still, plenty of people are raving about Obsessed, declaring it to be the summer´s biggest hit. Time will only tell since the single has been a bit of a goose hunt to find since its debut. Bloggers are afraid to post it and Youtube deletes any attempts to share the single and its lyrics through fanatic video creations.  But whether or not Obssessed will give Carey her 19^th number one single on the Hot 100 or Eminem is sitting in his room writing heartbroken vocals about his obsession´s diss, Obsessed is sure to start overflowing the radio and clubs soon enough.

Check out Mariah Carey´s greatest hits here on Red Karaoke or give the history making Touch my body a try.

There was a time when the only music I listened to was whatever industry peddled pop stuff was being played on the radio… some of it better than others, but never anything with too much depth. I can remember being in my Dad´s car, dreading it, because while I wanted so much to hear the latest single by, oh I don´t know, Jessica Simpson, I knew my choices would be between NPR or whatever too sophisticated for my 13 year old tastes CD my Dad wanted to listen to. Thus, I was introduced to Steely Dan, one of my Dad´s favorite artists and one of the greatest musical machines to come out of the US, at an age when I definitely wasn´t anywhere near being able to appreciate them. But times change, kids grow up, and this week I found myself listening to Steely Dan´s jazz infused 1970´s album Aja and appreciating in a way that I never thought I would the downright genius structures of their songs and lyrics.

Aja is actually Steely Dan´s most successful album; of the 30 million sales they have made worldwide, 5 million alone were from Aja, one of the first albums to ever sell over a 1 million copies in the US. Like all of Steely Dan´s records, core members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen brought in the best, demanding perfection in their well known obsessive way.

Peg, the fourth track on Aja which has found recent popularity out of the mouths of artists like Nerina Pallot and my own geeky guitar playing crush Jason Mraz, gives a great example of the kind of perfectionist tendencies Becker and Fagen were known for, and the sort of brilliant results it can produce. The band went through 7 of the best studio guitarists they could find before working produce and song writer Jay Graydon over for 6 hours and selecting his rendering of the guitar solo as just right. On the TV series Classic Albums, which featured the album Aja shows some of the behind the scenes work and opinions of other artists who appeared on the track Peg, including Michael McDonald featured on vocals and drummer Rick Marotta.

Peg, about an aspiring actress being promised her big break, is an excellent track, and this week´s featured karaoke. I think it´s certainly a challenge to try and match Steely Dan´s studio perfectionism, are you up for it? Check out the forum and post your rendition of Peg.

Kings of Leon may be comprised of four young guys you´ve never heard of, but the boys aren´t any kind of newbies when it comes to the music business. Despite having only reached superstar fame this past year in the USA after their release of the album Only By Night, Kings of Leon have been eating at the big kid´s table for a while now, it just took awhile for the US to sit up and take notice.

The group, comprised of three Southern brothers and their cousin, have all been playing music since they were kids, though Kings of Leon´s origins are a little bit surprising to anyone who only knows their drug and alcohol marred past and reputation for fist fights as an early band. Their father, Leon who the band is named for, was a minister who caravanned the kids around with him as he preached all over the South, enlisting their musical talents to aid in delivering the gospel. ¨We weren´t allowed to watch TV and couldn´t listen to Rock ´n Roll,¨ Lead guitarist Matthew Followhill describes their strict religious upbringing, ¨I didn´t know who Bono was until I was 18.¨

Their religious beliefs aren´t something the boys have said goodbye to, even during their worst periods of drug and alcohol abuse. Frontman Caleb Followhill even describes getting strung out on cocaine, followed by heated arguments about the existence of God, quoting scripture the entire time. The Kings, who have more or less turned down the volume on the hardcore drug abuse, apologizing for their bad habits, attribute their crazy days to a combination of being both so young, and so new on the scene. All too easy to understand when you consider the rapid rise they experienced during their early album releases.

Kings of Leon´s first two albums garnered the group more than just moderate fame, particularly in the UK.  2003´s Youth and Young Manhood, the title taken right from the father´s bible, earned the family rockers the euro press´s dubbing as the ¨driving forces behind the new rock revolution,¨ and got them started touring with big bands like The Strokes and U2 (I´m assuming that´s when they figured out who Bono was). In 2005, the release of their album Aha Shake Heartbreak only increased their European fame, and they spent the years after that playing with the likes of Pearl Jam and Bob Dylan.

Caleb describes the whirlwind of being thrown in with such major groups, at the beginning of their career, as being ¨thrown to the wolves.¨ Recognizing early criticism the band received for not owning their own potential, particularly with their third album release in 2007, Because of the times, Caleb admits in more than one interview that the band wasn´t always very confident in their abilities. ¨All these bands we were touring with, some of them were 30 years old, and here´s my little brother Jared, aged 15, on the bass. And so, night by night, we would do something a little closer to being, you know, a confident band.¨

Because of the times is considered their most pivotal album, the first where Kings of Leon really played around with their own sound, and received mixed reviews for doing so. Entertainment Weekly called it their ¨crowning achievement,¨ while other critics, such as Dave Hood of Artrocker responded with comments like "Kings of Leon are experimenting, learning, and getting a bit lost." Still, the group had certainly come a long way from their first UK show at a strip club, selling out venues like New York City´s Radio City Hall and London´s 02 Arena (which seats 20,000) in a matter of hours. Whether people liked Because of the times or not, nothing could prepare for the success that would follow with their 2008 release.

¨After three records and touring for 5 years straight, we knew what we were capable of,¨ drummer Nathan Followhill says on the band´s site, describing the 2008 release of their monumental achievement Only By Night, ¨We just had to put our money where our mouths were.¨

With Only by Night, Kings of Leon reached international success incomparable to the loads of fame they had already achieved in the UK and the rest of the world, finally breaking into the US audience base, and reaching #5 on the US charts. The album entered the UK charts at #1, maintaining the spot for 4 weeks, going on to become the 3^rd highest selling album of 2008 in the UK, beating out Brit´s own Coldplay. In 2009, the Kings of Leon and the album Only by Night went on to win Best International Band and Album at the Brit Awards.

Caleb describes the album as, the Kings of Leon being, ¨back not only as a band, but as a friends.¨ He goes on to say the title, which references Edgar Allen Poe, was meant to describe the ¨family vibe¨ of ¨every night after recording going to a bar together and talking about what we were going to do the next day, rather than all of us going to our separate homes.¨

Here on Red Karaoke we have finally debuted two of these bands singles from Only by night. Sex on fire, the song that turned the band into superstars, was a bit of a surprise hit for the group, in the end winning them a Grammy. Caleb suggests just how ready people were for some less serious music, ¨People were tired of hearing about war and politics, and Sex on Fire is a song about sex and young kids.¨

The second Red Karaoke debut is Use Somebody, a song Caleb wrote while on the road about being far from home. Kings of Leon performed Use Somebody deliciously well at the MTV Movie Awards, conquering even the Twlight and Highschool Musical fanbase, and the single has reached #19 on the Top Modern Rock Charts.

Check out the new Kings of Leon songs on Red Karaoke and see if you can own this bands sexy sound.

This has been one of those weeks. You know the kind… everything seems to be going wrong, when you can´t catch a break, for whatever reason, work, school, significant other, you find yourself down in the dumps and wanting to lay around in bed all day watching really bad daytime television. It´s definitely the pits, and when I´m feeling like this, I usually find the only way to drag myself out of that kind of pathetic low is by listening to some kind of peppy feel good music (usually that I can torture whoever is around me by singing along).

Enter this week´s featured karaoke.

 I happen to adore 80´s music, especially when I need a pick me up. It´s always full of energy. Even 80´s ballads make me happy, whether or not it´s because they are so cheesy you can´t help but laugh at them. But the best part about 80´s music is that it´s so darn great to sing along with, which, I´m sure the users of Red Karaoke can sympathize, always makes me feel good. So this week I found myself listening nonstop to some 80´s classics (Journey, Bon jovi and the like), but above all one song I couldn´t turn off, ´cause it just made me feel too good. Take Me Home Tonight has got to be the one song, no matter where I am, that I can´t help but sing along too… and therefore can´t help but feel downright pleased with life.

Take Me Home Tonight was released in 1986 by 80´s rocker Eddie Money. The single was pretty well received, reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the #1 spot on the Mainstream Rock Tracks. It´s classic 80´s, not too many twists, a lively song about some guy trying to convince a girl that they are destined to spend the night together (apparently based on an actual old friend of the band who always needed a place to crash). In the original, there´s a fun little reference to The Ronette´s previous hit, Be My Baby, in the chorus when Money sings, ¨Just like Ronnie sang…¨ after which, Ronnie Spector actually sings, ¨Be my little baby.¨ Maybe nothing special as far as 80´s singles go, but it happens to be my favorite.

It´s not a huge challenge, but I offer Take Me Home Tonight up as the karaoke of the week, in hopes that recording this song will be as fun for Red Karaoke users as it is for me to sing. Heck, it´s been covered enough by artists from like Lovesick Radio, Hinder, Jamestown story and the list goes on… add your own recording to the list. Check out the forum thread and post your rendition there.

A little over a week ago, the US Karaoke Alliance released their Top 500 Karaoke Songs of All Time. Using information gathered over the last couple of years from over 1000 karaoke shows at over 30 bars, the USKA made this rather substantial list that ranges from classics like Johnny Cash´s Folsom Prison Blues (#21) to more recent sensations like Estelle´s American Boy (#313). Here´s a little review of what the USKA considers the Top 10 and what Red Karaoke thinks.

According to the USKA, Picture, a duet and the first country effort ever released by Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow in 2001, is the number one song people are singing in karaoke bars all over the US. While I admit I´ve never been able to escape any karaoke venue without hearing some couple croon this sappy, country *ahem* hit, let´s just say I wouldn´t make it my number one. And Picture, with only 13 recordings of the single, wouldn´t be Red Karaoke´s number one karaoke either. Still, the fact is the song was Kid ´s biggest hit before All Summer Long dominated the charts last summer, and it still remains Crow´s second biggest US hit to date behind All I Wanna Do (a song I´d much rather hear). With a CMA award and several crowning glories on the Billboard Charts, whether I like it or not, I guess it makes some kind of sense that Picture is the most popular song people are choosing to torture unsuspecting audiences with.

Second place was also won by a country song, American Idol winner Carrie Underwood´s massive hit, Before he cheats. The single, more or less one of the best glorifications of revenge on a cheating boyfriend in existence, is Underwood´s most successful release to date as the third longest running top single of the Billboard Hot 100 and holding the CMA´s crown as 2007 Single of the Year. And while the lyrics alone make this a fun song to sing along with a group of your closest gal pals under the lights of a karaoke stage, it´s also a great showcase for anyone lucky enough to have vocal talent like Carrie Underwood.

Oh oh, those Summer Nights. Yes, the third ranking top karaoke song of the USA belongs to a duet I am only just a bit happier to hear than Picture. I really don´t have much against the popular Summer Nights, originally performed in the musical Grease by John Travolta and Olivia Newton John. It´s a lighthearted group song (yay for group karaokes!), making it an obvious choice for karaoke parties, though it´s popularity on Red Karaoke doesn´t scream the third best karaoke in the US with only 17 recordings.

The #4 spot on the USKA´s Top 500 finally goes to a song I really feel deserves a top spot. Journey´s signature power ballad Don´t Stop believing has got to be one of the all time greatest karaoke songs. Maybe I´m biased since hearing this song causes me to become absorbed in nostalgic memories of my old favorite karaoke bar just walking distance from my university and my closest group of buddies bellowing into the microphone with stupid happy grins on their faces. But it just can´t be denied that by the time anyone has gotten through the first lyric ¨Just a small town girl…¨, no matter how awful their voice is, the whole crowd is belting out every word of this 80´s hit. Here on Red Karaoke, Don´t stop believing has been recorded 25 times, making it more popular on our site than any of the other top 10 karaokes selected by USKA, showing just what good taste our Red Karaoke users have.

Black Velvet, another song you can always expect to hear in any venue with a microphone up for grabs, is #5 on the list. The 1990 single is, in truth, a really fantastic and equally challenging song. While failed by most who attempt it in a karaoke bar, Black Velvet can be a true pleasure to hear when a person actually owns the sexy style of Alannah Myles. It´s been tried only 13 times on Red Karaoke, with a few successes well worth listening to.

Sixth place goes to the Redneck anthem of all time, known and loved by anyone who knows how to use ¨ya´ll¨ in a sentence, Garth Brook´s signature country hit, Friends in low places. There must be more karaoke bars in the South, because I can´t think of any other reason so many country songs are in the Top 10 of the Top Karaoke Songs of all time, and I sure can´t imagine walking into a karaoke club in New York City expecting to hear a bunch of suits singing along to ¨I´ve got friends in low places, where the whiskey drowns and the beer chases my blues away…¨

The USKA switches it up a little with their 7th most popular karaoke song, rock/reggae single Santeria by Sublime. I´m a little surprised by this choice, only recorded here on Red Karaoke 5 times in total. Not that I don´t love the song, or the equally entertaining video in the style of a western. It´s just that, I´ve been to my fair share of karaoke parties and clubs, and I am pretty sure the only time I ever heard Santeria was when some bleach blonde surfer type with a thousand yard stare and a way of uttering every sentence as slowly as humanly possible, then ending it with Dude, happened to wander into the karaoke bar looking for a lighter… needless to say, not very often. Maybe there are lots of karaoke bars on the west coast too?

Okay, the last three spots of the top 10 were allotted to songs almost as deserving as Don´t Stop Believing. Finally I feel like the USKA´s polling of karaoke venues around the nation gave me some results I could wrap my head around. Number 8 is Neil Diamond´s Sweet Caroline, another one of those karaokes that, no matter how grating the singer´s voice is, gets the whole audience clapping and singing in unison, and kinda makes me wish my name was Caroline too.

The number 9 top karaoke spot belongs to Love Shack, the B-52´s biggest hit and another one of my personal favorites. But it´s not just a popular karaoke tune. Love Shack was named as one of the 365 Songs of the Century in 2001 and as one of Rolling Stone´s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

And last but not least, the 10th top karaoke song of all time, according to the USKA of course, is the rock anthem I love Rock and Roll, made oh so famous by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. It also happens to be a hit on Red Karaoke, as the second most popular of all the aforementioned karaokes with 20 total renditions (if you include the recordings under Britney Spears´ cover). The single I love Rock and Roll also won a spot on Rolling Stone´s 500 Greatest, along with a spot on Billboard´s Greatest. Another fun, well deserving karaoke of the Top 10.

So there you have the top 10 karaokes of all time, as collected by the US Karaoke Alliance based on people like you singing in clubs and bars all over the nation. Is your list any different? Mine sure would´ve been. Tell us what you would´ve chosen or share your own renditions of these top 10, here in Red Karaoke´s forum.