In the season-two premiere of Girls, you’ll see a few of the characters sing karaoke at a house party hosted by Hannah and Elijah, who are now roomies. You’ll even get to hear the usually uptight Marnie (Allison Williams) get very into a certain nineties hit. (We won’t say what it is, because that would ruin the mystery — but we did just give you a hint.) At the show’s season-two premiere party hosted by the Cinema Society last night, we asked the cast members what songs they like to sing at karaoke in real life. Here are their picks, many of which break the golden rule of karaoke: Don’t choose a song that’s longer than three minutes.
Allison Williams
“It’s a long one, but it’s ’Faithfully,’ by Journey. It builds, and by the end, everybody’s asleep, so they need a pick-me-up … A lot of the pop songs today are so challenging, I wouldn’t even endeavor to do them.â€
Lena Dunham
“I only did karaoke once, and I did ’Who Will Save Your Soul?’ by Jewel, which is a tough song … it’s hard. Hannah’s would be something off of Jagged Little Pill, by Alanis Morissette. I love her, Hannah loves her. Or Taylor Swift, if you wanted to go modern.â€
Alex Karpovsky
“I edited karaoke videos for five years before I did any acting or filmmaking, and I’m scarred and traumatized by that experience a little bit, so I don’t ever do karaoke. I feel like I’m legitimately off the hook. But if someone put a gun to my head, it would probably be Neil Diamond. ’Solitary Man.’â€
Jemima Kirke
“I like to sing a little Loretta Lynn. ’Rose Garden.’ I just sing it good. It’s the only song I can say that I know I can do.â€
Zosia Mamet
“I’ve never done karaoke. Oh my God, I’m so sorry!â€
Christopher Abbott
“I think I’d have to do some Bruce Springsteen, ’I’m On Fire,’ or ’1979’ by the Smashing Pumpkins. It’s a little long, a little dreary, it’s not a party-starter, but it’s got a mood. You save it for the end of the night, when everyone’s tired, sweated out, and voices are gone. Slow, mellow.â€
Andrew Rannells
“’Born to Run,’ by Bruce Springsteen. That’s my go-to karaoke song.†Vulture mentions that Christopher Abbott chose Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire.†Rannells responds: “But you know what I’ve learned? People love an up-tempo. You don’t want to bring down the room in a karaoke bar with a goddamn ballad. You want to do an up one. ‘Born to Run’ always kills. I’m going to tell Chris that; pass that along.â€