by Erin Moss

Created on: April 22, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

When one of the girls in my sorority told us that there wasn't going to be dancing at her wedding reception because she and her fianc don't dance, I was confused. What were we going to do after driving over an hour to get to her wedding location if we weren't going to dance and party down? Her answer: in lieu of a DJ and the Electric Slide, we were going to be able to partake in karaoke. Say that again?! I had never heard of karaoke at a wedding before, at least in the sense she was talking about (an actual karaoke machine and intended singing on stage). Previously the only "karaoke" I had witnessed at weddings had been heartfelt renditions of "Stop! In the Name of Love" and "Feelings" by my slightly inebriated aunts and uncles. Susan was actually incorporating off-pitch craziness into her wedding celebration on purpose!

I smiled politely and nodded as she laughed about how much fun it would be. What I was really thinking was, this seems like it is going to be really lame. Sure, I've had my share of fun singing ridiculous songs (read: The Pina Colada Song) at the local bar, but this was a wedding reception. And one that did not include the magic inhibition lowering drinks (aka alcohol). Plus, her family was ultra-conservative, which meant nothing as cool as "Baby Got Back," which was going to completely take the fun out of it.

After weeks of bitching to myself and the other compatriots who would be traveling with me to the wedding about how much it was going to suck, the day arrived. And, shock of shocks, it was not as bad as I thought it would be. The bride and her sister (who was a bridesmaid) got up and sang "Thriller" (including the creepy Vincent Price voice-overs). She then agreed to do a song with us, her fellow sorority sisters, but seemed less than thrilled when she found out our selection was "My Boyfriend's Back." Hey, it was amusing to us.

All in all, the karaoke was more fun than I had given it credit for when the idea was first introduced. However, when reflected on this foray of mine into wedding karaoke, I have come to the conclusion that if the group is more uninhibited, it will probably make for a lot more fun in the end. And certainly sanctioned, fun karaoke can end up a lot better than drunken "Feelings." Although all will produce something memorable.

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