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It’s hardly a secret that I’m a karaoke fan.

I’m a regular at a handful of the best karaoke nights in Philadelphia, not the least of which is the regular Tuesday Night Crowd with DJ Joe H at National Mechanics (which we’ve lovingly dubbed TechKaraokePHL), and more recently, the Skeletor Karaoke Gong Show at the Trocadero.

I toured across the US with 4 friends in a Winnebago that we converted into a mobile karaoke lounge.

I competed (and placed 3rd) in the first annual Happy Cog Cogaoke Karaoke competition at SXSW09, singing “Fight for your right” by the Beastie Boys. The result? Long time inspiration and mentor Jeff Zeldman approached me in the hall the next day to tell me I “f*$king rocked”.

I’m a bit of a microphone whore to begin with, but when it comes to belting out tracks, I’ve been known to sing until my vocal chords give out.

I even wrote, nay, CRAFTED the ultimate karaoke playlist for the blog Nonpretentious.

I’m not the only one who’s obsessed though.

Raina Lee, who I met during Whuffaoke in LA, wrote a book called “Hit Me with Your Best Shot: The Ultimate Guide to Karaoke Domination“. Epic, right?

And one karaoke mentor, who I’ve yet to meet but have been dying to, is Brian Raferty, author of “Don’t Stop Believin’: How Karaoke Conquered the World and Changed My Life“.

I truly believe that Brian’s thesis is right, and having completed the Whuffaoke tour, I firmly believe that Karaoke CAN change a person’s life…and quite possibly the world.

I think that karaoke has some of the most important qualities of an event that, as a society, we need now more than ever before.

Karaoke is empowering.

Karaoke is a form of creative expression, musically and theatrically.

Karaoke helps build strong bonds between people.

Karaoke makes people smile.

I’m super stoked that Philly’s First Person Arts Festival has brought Brian in from Brooklyn for an event this Friday at the Painted Bride, called: Karaoke Obsessed. First Person Arts is notorious in Philly for bringing some of the best events centered around story-telling to life, including the extremely popular Story Slam.

Tickets for Karaoke Obsessed are $15 for FPA members, $20 for non-members. If you’re a karaoke fan, a story telling fan, or you want me to sing my BEST new track (and hear why I love singing it), I recommend joining me this Friday, November 6th, from 9-11pm. Tickets are available online.