KARAOKE THERAPY: SING YOUR HEART OUT AND YOU’LL FEEL BETTER!

Want to get your family out of the COVID-19 funk? Try karaoke. Lift up everyone’s mood with singing and dancing. Hook up a karaoke machine and get started. You can be an amateur or have a terrible voice and still reap the benefits of singing.

Research shows that singing can naturally boost our mood as we release endorphins, the “feel good” chemicals in our body. Besides improving our mood, karaoke offers physical, emotional, social and educational benefits.

by Sandi Schwartz

PHYSICAL

Breathe Better: Singing helps slow our heart rate and improve our breathing pattern. When we sing karaoke, we are usually standing up and using our whole body to get into the song, which forces us to breathe more efficiently.

Strengthen Immune System: One study found that singing can improve our immune system. Professional choir members had their blood analyzed before and after an hourlong rehearsal, and the results showed the amount of proteins in the immune system that function as antibodies were much higher right after the rehearsal.

Improve Posture: To be a successful singer, we need to stand up straight with our shoulders and back properly aligned.

EMOTIONAL

Express Feelings and Emotions: When we belt out a song that has meaning to us or inspires us, we trigger an emotional response within ourselves. Singing, therefore, helps us express our feelings and emotions in a creative way.

Increase Happiness: When we sing a happy, upbeat tune, our overall mood improves because it is enjoyable and distracts us from our daily commitments and worries. In addition to releasing endorphins, we have a tiny organ in our ear called the sacculus that creates a sense of pleasure when we sing.

Reduce Stress and Anxiety: Karaoke does wonders for reducing stress and anxiety, so much so, it has been used as a type of therapy to help people get over their fears or phobias.

EDUCATIONAL

Stimulate The Brain: Singing can be complex and requires a lot of brain power to follow along with the rhythm, melody and lyrics. This challenge causes activity in the neurons of our brain that bring together emotional, physical and psychological changes.

Improve Reading: Karaoke is no simple task. The lyrics flash up on the screen and we need to react quickly by reading accurately and then singing them. So, karaoke is a great way to help our kids master their reading skills.

Sharpen Memory: Singing requires us to use the memory section of our brain. Even though the lyrics are on the screen, we still access the memories we have in our brain about the song if we have heard it before.

SOCIAL

Build Confidence: Singing in front of a crowd takes a ton of confidence, so karaoke gives your kids that special experience that will help them develop and overcome any fears like public speaking.

Practice Team Work: When we do karaoke with others, we work together to coordinate what we are singing either in unison or at the appropriate alternating times. Our kids learn how to encourage their singing mates so that everyone is successful and has a good time.

Bond With Family: Karaoke is a way to bring your family together to do something creative, meaningful and fun. You will enjoy introducing your kids to the “oldies” that you grew up with.

KARAOKE: GETTING STARTED

Check out these ways to get musical and enjoy karaoke at home.

For younger kids, look up Kid Songs Karaoke on YouTube for sing-a-long nursery rhymes and children’s songs. Pinkfong! Kids’ Songs & Stories has dance-along and sing-a-long videos to original music.

Looking for kid-friendly music? Check out Karafun for instrumental versions of nursery rhymes, Disney songs, TV themes and more for some delightful music to sing along to.

Get a fun karaoke microphone from weird tails. The Wireless Karaoke Microphone has Bluetooth, so it can easily connect to many of your devices to host a karaoke party in your living room or car. The microphone lights up, comes in three different colors and can record songs using an app. Available at amazon.com for $20.99.

Apps are a great way to try karaoke at home. Check out Karaoke for Kids by Grabbit, which has songs for younger kids, like “B-I-N-G-O,” “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” and “The Wheels on the Bus.” Karaoke by Yokee Music has a free catalog of songs for belting out, and you can record and share your version with friends.

Get a karaoke machine for a fun way to sing along. The Disney Princess Bluetooth Karaoke Machine by eKids can connect wirelessly via Bluetooth, has a USB port, a multi-colored LED light show and is decorated with Disney princesses. Available at amazon.com for $48.98. Kidzlane’s Kids MP3 Player Karaoke Machine comes with two microphones, so the kids can sing together. With Bluetooth, USB, Aux and radio, you can listen and sing along to all kinds of music. Available at amazon.com for $49.99. Kids Karaoke Machine for Girls by Little Pretender is shaped like a cute purse for an easily portable way to enjoy karaoke anywhere. Available at amazon.com for $17.99.