MySpace members with a hankering to belt out Barry Manilow's "Copa Cabana" or just listen to off-key, screeching Kelly Clarkson impersonations can now get their fix, thanks to the social network's new karaoke feature.
MySpace Karaoke, unveiled this week, comes two years after Fox Interactive, the branch of News Corp. that includes MySpace, purchased the karaoke site kSolo.com. The launch follows a flurry of activity that has seen MySpace announce a music store and political and Latino content as it tries to stay even with Facebook, its main rival.
For better or worse, the new karaoke feature allows members to record their renditions and post them on their profiles, essentially turning the social network into one giant karaoke club. All users need is a microphone -- the site offers the songs, stripped of lyrics, for free.
"It's not as much fun to go to karaoke alone, but when you do it through the internet or on your MySpace page, then you can share it with people," MySpace cofounder Tom Anderson told the Associated Press.
The 3,000-song library appears to be low on current chart-toppers but offers fairly recent hits by Alicia Keys and the Fray alongside classic tracks by Etta James and the Beatles. Sarah McLachlan's 1999 hit "Angel" is currently the most popular song.
