Once viewed as a late-night novelty, it has evolved into one of the on-trade’s fastest-growing experience-led offers, with venues reporting soaring bookings, longer dwell times and thousands of pounds in additional weekly revenue.
At Irish pub Molly Mc’s, around 650 guests use the venue’s signature “singing rooms” every month, generating approximately £2,000 a week in pre-booked revenue alone.
Windmill Taverns operations director John McElhinney said karaoke had been central to the concept from day one, with the pub now known on social media as the “Irish singing pub”.
He told The MA: “From the start, our vision was to create an Irish pub with a singing twist. We could see karaoke was quickly becoming a go-to night out in London, and it just felt like the perfect fit.”
The site offers free karaoke on Mondays and Tuesdays, while customers pay £8 per person, per hour on Sundays and Wednesdays, rising to £12 Thursday to Saturday.
Windmill Taverns built the singing rooms in-house, meaning all revenue generated goes directly back into the business.
Saturdays remain the busiest trading day, although Wednesday to Friday bookings are increasingly catching up.
McElhinney described karaoke as “a great revenue stream” and said there remained “a huge amount of room to grow”, adding it worked both as an upsell and “a reason to visit”.
He attributed karaoke’s rapid rise to “an amalgamation of cultural, social and business shifts”.
Memorable experiences
“People are looking for experiences on a night out and live music and karaoke seem to be favourable,” he said. “Karaoke is interactive and social and memorable.”
Song choices remain fiercely competitive. According to McElhinney, Chappell Roan’s Pink Pony Club currently tops the charts at Molly Mc’s.
“We’re waiting for what is going to knock it off from number one,” he added.
Elsewhere in London, The Killer’s Mr Brightside is the most requested song at the Thieves pub in Clapham Junction.
Operated by Laine Pub Company, the Thieves has seen karaoke bookings surge since it reopened after a refurb at the end of last year, with around 500 customers a month taking to the mic.
Sessions are priced according to demand, typically costing £30 for an off-peak hour or £45 for 45 minutes during peak trading times. Saturday’s between 7pm and 11pm are the busiest period.
Laine head of growth, brand and innovation Gordon Keen said the evolution of karaoke reflected changing consumer expectations around value and social experiences.
“We’ve seen a big shift towards experience-led nights out,” he told The MA.
“Karaoke rooms give groups something interactive to do rather than just sitting around a table, and that’s become a lot more appealing, especially with rising costs, people want more value from a night out.”
Technology has also played a major role in the growth. According to Singa UK market director Steve Dalton, the digital karaoke service now supplies more than 300 venues across the UK, representing year-on-year growth of 70%.
Digital evolution
While the service supports pubs nationwide, Dalton highlighted Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and London as karaoke hotspots.
He added digitisation had removed many of the operational barriers traditionally associated with karaoke and other entertainment-led activities.
“If we look at darts, it was very analogue [15 years ago], now it’s interactive, and it’s the same with karaoke,” he said. “Because the platform has been digitised, it is very easy to integrate.
“It used to be an analogue process where you would ask a host if they have a song, write it on a bit of paper, it was a very cumbersome process, whereas now, the supply network for karaoke and other forms of entertainment have created a much more experience-led service.”
“[Karaoke’s] continued growth suggests it’s not a short-term trend but part of a longer-term evolution in the sector”
Lucky Voice business development manager Nick Jones
However, Dalton warned operators against taking a one-size-fits-all approach, arguing success depended on understanding what customers wanted from the experience.
“Whether that is the branding of the room or the customisation of the interface,” he continued, “operators need something different, something unique.”
That sentiment was echoed by Lucky Voice business development manager Nick Jones, who said karaoke had evolved from a late-night stage activity into a more inclusive, shared experience.
He added the shift towards private rooms had been key, removing the “fear factor” and making karaoke more accessible to less confident singers while aligning with demand for immersive experiences.
Though Jones stressed creating a premium karaoke offer involved far more than simply installing a booth or screen.
“If the lighting or sound quality isn’t right or the system feels clunky, it breaks the experience immediately,” he said. “People want to be able to sing along to their favourite songs and have the backing music sound exactly as they expect.”
Jones further highlighted the importance of “removing friction” from the customer journey.
Sense of connection
“That starts from the moment someone visits our website - being able to easily check availability, book online, and add on food and drink packages.
“Once in-venue, it’s about making everything feel seamless. Features like our ‘Thirsty’ button allow guests to order drinks directly to their room, so they don’t lose valuable singing time queueing at the bar.”
Lucky Voice also updates its catalogue monthly, incorporates customer requests to keep things fresh and offers songs in 17 languages, with Jones underlining a “well-curated song library keeps people coming back”.
While birthdays and spontaneous nights out remain key drivers of trade, he said corporate and large-group bookings were becoming increasingly important as consumers continue to prioritise experience-led socialising.
“Whether it’s friends, colleagues or couples, karaoke creates a sense of connection and collective memory that goes beyond a typical night out.. its continued growth suggests it’s not a short-term trend but part of a longer-term evolution in the sector,” he said.
Jones added Lucky Voice was also seeing increased demand from operators for its commercial-grade karaoke software and systems, Powered by Lucky Voice.
While operators agree quality is the most important factor when curating a karaoke offer, there are other factors operators should consider.
This includes PRS and PPL licensing for music as well as soundproofing and CCTV in private karaoke rooms to safeguard staff and customers.
Things like air conditioning and a troubleshooting guide for any tech issues, back-up equipment and cleaning regimes for touchpoints should also be considered.
Whether through private singing rooms, karaoke pods or live stages, demand for experience-led nights out continues to grow, and karaoke is at the forefront of that evolution, increasingly viewed as a long-term revenue driver rather than a novelty.
