Sorting the Wheat from the Chaff, Karaoke style
January 16, 2016 12:49 AM   Subscribe

Want a fun way to see which singers can still hit it outside of a studio and without a mixing board? Carpool Karaoke, hosted by James Corden (as part of The Late Late Show) who is driving, takes a singer and has them sing along with their own work (and others) while driving around.

The most popular (and pretty outstanding) episode so far has been with Adele, who as well as belting out her own tunes rapped along to Nicki Minaj. Other greats were Stevie Wonder and Rod Stewart. Others, not so much ... And Corden himself doesn't sing too badly himself.
posted by Megami (28 comments total)

This post was deleted for the following reason: Poster's Request -- loup



 
It's kinda neat but the studio audience sound effects are ridiculous! What is the point?
posted by Jode at 4:33 AM on January 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


Is X doing Y in cars a thing these days?

Because it seems to be a thing.

(The oldest version I can think of is the Black Cab Sessions, in which your favourite band - which sucks - sings in a London taxi). I have no idea who many of these people are, but if Brian Wilson does it, it must be really good or insanely bad.
posted by Mezentian at 4:41 AM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


One of the best ones is with One Direction, surprisingly enough—especially Corden's rap breakdown in the middle of one of their songs.
posted by mothershock at 4:52 AM on January 16, 2016 [5 favorites]


Adele rapping is a scream. I would love to hang out with her!
posted by orrnyereg at 4:56 AM on January 16, 2016 [3 favorites]


That One Direction one was really the one that got me paying attention to this bit and Corden's show -- still actively moping the departure of Ferguson I guess -- at least some of the replays has to be from me, just to listen to his rap.
posted by cendawanita at 6:34 AM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


The Adele one was great. When she spilled the tea on herself and then "chugged" the rest of her tea, I knew she was my kind of person.

I too had been grumpy about Corden and refused to watch the one with Bieber, but I thought it was genuinely touching when he teared up a bit as Stevie Wonder sang to his wife...
posted by TwoStride at 7:01 AM on January 16, 2016 [4 favorites]


I highly recommend the one with Jennifer Hudson.
posted by WesterbergHigh at 8:10 AM on January 16, 2016 [6 favorites]


The Jennifer Hudson bit at the drive thru is AMAZING.
posted by mochapickle at 8:14 AM on January 16, 2016 [3 favorites]


I don't think it's the first time that Rod Stewart reached over to fondle a driver. A seasoned hand so to speak.

God bless you, Rod Stewart!
posted by helmutdog at 8:27 AM on January 16, 2016


Other greats were Stevie Wonder

"I just called, to say, James loves you" -- and the intro was pretty great. Stevie has a fun sense of humor throughout it.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:15 AM on January 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


nicki minaj loves adele's monster verse part specifically, the wave.
posted by nadawi at 9:32 AM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


I really liked these. What I appreciate is that you get to see the star's personality. Too often they are on stage or in front of cameras or paparazzi and they have to behave in a certain way and here, for most, they let their guard down.
posted by AugustWest at 9:38 AM on January 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


Keep your hands on the damn wheel, James!
posted by tdismukes at 10:15 AM on January 16, 2016 [3 favorites]


i like this a lot better than the lip-sync battle show -- this feels more real.
posted by garlic at 10:31 AM on January 16, 2016


In every video so far there is at least one point where James nails something and the performer is like daaaaayyyuumm

Yes! I love seeing that moment of pleased joy when they realize that Corden can sing.

I was disappointed with Carrie Underwood--I thought she'd bring more personality to the gig. Isn't she like the permanent host of the country music awards?
posted by TwoStride at 11:08 AM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


I've been so sad this whole week since learning about Bowie. This was exactly what I needed. Thank you Megami and thank you James Cordon.
posted by Joey Michaels at 11:17 AM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


You didn't like the Iggy Azalea one?! I thought she was super fun! Huh. Agree, though, Jennifer Hudson was great!

Unsung hero? The top button of James' polo shirt. He's showing that thing who's boss.
posted by amanda at 11:21 AM on January 16, 2016


I think that for Stevie, he is older and much more relaxed in public and with himself. I thought One Direction were nervous but you could see they were decent kids who were not yet comfortable breaking character as a group. They were talking about their hiatus and my guess is that they do spend the time getting more comfortable. I thought Hudson was great and so willing to go along with the premise and joke. Taking a selfie with your own Hollywood star!! Bieber too. I think he is a good guy who likes to party. Mod Rod was at first not sure what to make if this thing his agent had arranged, but at some point he seemed to say, wtf, let's just go with it. Adele was the best. She just was comfortable and has an every woman normal personality. She was not afraid to make fun of herself or to risk making a fool of herself (which she did not!). I also liked Jason Derulo. He seemed down to earth. Opera?! Hip Hopera!

You could sort of tell how it was going to be by the length of the video.

The other thing that struck me was that Cordon learned the words to every song and had the choreography down with his arms etc and not just in the One Direction one, in all of them. He is an accomplished singer, but his range, especially the high part was impressive.
posted by AugustWest at 1:36 PM on January 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


Keep your hands on the damn wheel, James!

Seriously. As somebody who's been in a serious automotive accident, I can't watch these. They're harrowing.
posted by Shmuel510 at 2:18 PM on January 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


You could sort of tell how it was going to be by the length of the video

And if he had to go to non-singing gimmicks, like trying on clothes with Carrie Underwood and Iggy...
posted by TwoStride at 2:49 PM on January 16, 2016


Silly question: where is he driving them? Is he basically just going in circles from wherever he picks them up, or...?
posted by TwoStride at 2:50 PM on January 16, 2016


My favorite thing about Adele (other than the fact that she can belt in a way that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up), as someone who isn't really a fan and just knows the few songs they play on the radio, is that awesome, harsh, washerwoman cackle of a laugh she has. That (and the tea chugging) make her seem so incredibly un-precious, like someone you could hang out with. And yeah, dude can sing!
posted by biscotti at 3:29 PM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


This article on how they got Adele for the segment also talks about the driving. They choose an easy route, go no more than about 20mph, and he's got a caravan of producers' cars in front and behind. The cameras are tiny and stuck to the windshield where his line of sight isn't obscured.
posted by Lyn Never at 3:56 PM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


Re: Corden's singing ability, apparently he was in a boy band.
posted by juv3nal at 4:44 PM on January 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


I can't stop watching these. James seems to really be having a blast too, which makes them especially fun to watch.
posted by ThatCanadianGirl at 6:39 PM on January 16, 2016 [2 favorites]


I didn't think I could possibly love Adele more but here we are.

Can you even imagine what it's like to be in a small space filled with that voice? I think I would implode.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 10:55 PM on January 16, 2016 [1 favorite]


OH HOLY GOD ADELE SINGING SPICE GIRLS
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 10:57 PM on January 16, 2016


How did this James guy jump the pond?
posted by k8t at 11:06 PM on January 16, 2016


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