Welcome, Dennis Andrews!

Welcome, Dennis, to the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa! He joins by way of Miss Pamela Andrews.

Today was the last day of sign-ups, so unless there is someone who joins within the next couple hours of so, Dennis should be rounding up our list of Karaoke Secret Santa participants! Stay tuned for the draw, which should happen tomorrow.

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, James H!

Welcome, James, to the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa. He's a newcomer to the party and I believe a friend of Miss Pamela Andrews.

Today was the last day and tomorrow should be the draw! Stay tuned for updates.

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, Anna D!

Welcome, Anna, to the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa! Anna is an old high school friend of mine and I'm sure she'll be awesome for anyone who draws her!

Speaking of the draw, today was the last day of sign-ups, so the draw will be happening soon. Stay tuned for updates!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, Rubyrose Bautista!

Welcome, Rubyrose, to my Karaoke Secret Santa! This new participant is dear to my heart as she is none other than my Ate Ruby (my sister, for anyone not in the Filipino know).

Sign-up deadline was today, so the draw will be coming soon! Stay tuned for more updates!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome back, Charlie Spiegel!

Welcome back, Charlie, a 2009 Karaoke Secret Santa participant! Last year, he gave a rendition of John Mayer's "Why Georgia", with accompanying violin and guitar, which is a great example of what you can do for your secret santa!

Check it out:

Tomorrow's the deadline, but you can still sign up! Do so here.

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, Jen O!

Welcome, Jen O, another first-timer here at Karaoke Secret Santa! Thanks for joining and hope you have fun!

Tomorrow's the deadline to sign-up! You can still do so here.

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, Daniel Brinsmead!

Welcome, Daniel Brinsmead, yet another newcomer to the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa! Daniel hails from the same fine institution as Pamela, so whoever draws Daniel should be in for a treat.

Only three days left! Sign-up as soon as possible at Elfster.com.

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, Alexandria Griffin!

Welcome, Alexandria, yet another first-timer here at KSS2010! She comes by way of Armand, a KSS veteran, so to speak.

View her wishlist, and all the KSS participants' wishlists, here and sign up for the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa! Deadline is Saturday, December 11th!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, Sian Mansell!

Welcome aboard, Sian, another Karaoke Secret Santa newbie! She posted her wishlist and picked some awesome wild card songs. Check out the Elfster exchange page to view and sign up for the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa.

Hope you have fun!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

And how could we forget...

... the extraordinary lengths that the one and only Joseph Restubog went to last year for his Secret Santa recipient, Vanessa?



Totally awesome video.

Sign up for the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa here!

Cheers,
Pam

Welcome back, Mikael Short!

Mikael, aka blondekel13, has re-joined Karaoke Secret Santa this year! Last year, Mikael gave her secret santa this video:

Sign up for the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa here!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome back, Pamela Andrews: The Video!

I neglected to post Pamela's Karaoke Secret Santa vid from last year! Check it out:

Sign up for the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa here!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome back, Armand Barbone!

Welcome back, Armand, another one of our 2009 participants! Armand, last year, used Rock Band to back his Karaoke Secret Santa video. Check out the awesomeness:

Have you signed up, yet? Do so by Saturday, December 11, 2010 to make the draw! Sign up here (also located on the top menu).

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome, Ann Squires!

Welcome, Ann Squires, our first newcomer to Karaoke Secret Santa 2010! She *just* signed up via the Sign-up link (which you can find posted in the top menu right above) and is now posting her wishlist as we speak.

Welcome aboard and hope you have fun!

(Sign up soon; deadline is 12/11/2010!)

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

The Karaoke Secret Santa "How-To", In-Depth: Sign-Up and Posting Your Wishlist

I will be blogging a few of these as we go along, to help with the Karaoke Secret Santa process.

How to Sign Up for the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa:

In the past, there have been hiccups with signing up for KSS, but I believe Elfster offers a better way to do so.

Basically, there are two ways to sign-up/be invited:

1. Receive an email invitation from myself and responding to it.
2. Click the "Sign-Up" Link, located in the top menu, right above.

After that, you will have to sign up for the Elfster secret santa site where you can RSVP and join the Karaoke Secret group and 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa gift exchange.

How to Post Your Wishlist on Elfster.com:

This is where it is a little different than last year. Last year, you just posted it up by filling out a form. This year, you have to "Wish" your songs individually. It may appear to be more complicated than it actually is, but follow these steps for a no-fail way of posting your KSS Wishlist:

Create a "Karaoke Secret Santa 2010" Wishlist:

1. Log-in. If you haven't signed up for Elfster.com, do so.
2. Sign-up for the 2010 Karaoke Secret Santa (see above). Doing this will make sure you're actually participating and will be involved in the draw after the sign-up deadline.
3. Look at the top, right-hand corner. You should see, "Hi, [first name]" and the link, "Settings" after. Click on Settings.
4. Click on Wishlist Settings.
5. Create a New Wishlist, or re-name current wishlist for KSS. You can then click on making it visible to either the "Karaoke Secret" group or "Anyone". Obviously, at least make it accessible to the group.

Posting on your Wishlist:

1. Once logged in, click on "wish" in the top menu at Elfster.com.
2. You will be led to a page where you can "Add to Wishlist". Since you are answering questions (e.g. "Favorite Artist: John Mayer"), as opposed to searching for particular items, simply answer a KSS question and click "Wish" under the form box.
3. A pop-screen will appear where you can choose the KSS wishlist and provide an optional link for your "wish".
4. Once submitted, repeat the process for the rest of the questions .

If you have any questions, or comments, on the process, simply comment below, or e-mail us at karaokesecret@gmail.com.

Thank you and I look forward to seeing all your wishlists and videos!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Welcome back, Pamela Andrews!

Yesterday, my other half, Miss Pamela Andrews, accepted the invitation and posted her wishlist on Elfster. How about you?

(See "Sign-Up" Link above, in the top menu to join; deadline is 12/11/2010!)

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

Karaoke Secret Santa 2010 is now on Elfster.com!

I'm happy to announce that we are moving the Karaoke Secret Santa gift exchange to Elfster.com. Similar to last year, you will have to sign up for the site to participate. But, it's free and pretty easy-to-use!

There is one main reason for this change:

The "Post a Sign-Up Link" Feature

Last year, there was a huge issue with the most basic ability to sign up for Karaoke Secret Santa, causing wishlists to be overridden and RSVPs to be rendered meaningless. I had to lay out detailed instructions on sending me an email so I can send you an email invite, and I was unable to share a link.

Now, it's much easier and user-friendly to sign-up. You can just click on a link and RSVP. Once you do, a pop-up screen will help you through the sign-up/log-in process.

Here is the sign-up link for Karaoke Secret Santa 2010:

http://www.elfster.com/exchange/view/4481605/ec5635/

This way, not only can I share the link to invite you guys to participate, but you can share the link to your friends, as well. Hopefully, this will open up Karaoke Secret Santa to a broader audience.

Everyone should RSVP as soon as possible. The sign-up deadline is December 11, 2010 and the draw will happen automatically the next day.

So, dust off your cameras and warm up your vocal chords as we celebrate Christmas by re-discovering our inner Karaoke. I hope you guys have fun and have a happy holiday season!

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

If you encounter any questions on how to sign-up, create your wishlist or make your video, please reference the "Karaoke Secret Santa How-To" link above, or e-mail us at karaokesecret@gmail.com. We will be posting in-depth how-to blogs in the coming days, so be on the look out!

Welcome to KSS2010!

Interested? Send e-mail to karaokesecret@gmail.com for official invite!

Last year, in late November, I realized Christmas was just around the corner and wanted to do something special, but something different. Since I love going out and performing Karaoke, one idea was to invite a whole bunch of people that I knew to a local Karaoke joint and do a drawing throughout, creating random duets and having people perform together. The list of friends who actually enjoyed doing karaoke as much as I do is minimal, but I thought it'd still be fun.

I also had this strange desire to do something different with the Secret Santa tradition: broaden the Secret Santa reach to the entire world. Why only share the random gift of giving to just a group of friends or a group of office colleagues? Why limit the possibilities to physical merchandise that you have to ship across continents? I mean, attempting to pull off a worldwide Secret Santa, without boundaries and open to anyone, is an arduous, maybe impossible task, especially considering the varying degrees of shipping costs and delivery times.

However, inspired by the soaring popularity and accessibility of YouTube, the surprising success of online singing sensations (think Susan Boyle or Julia Nunes), and my personal love (and some say, obsession) of Karaoke, I've found a way to kick the Secret Santa up another notch, while being realistic about the ability of people around the world to follow through with it.

Thus, I present to you:
 

KARAOKE SECRET SANTA 

The idea of the Karaoke Secret Santa are for the participants to give each other personal YouTube videos, in lieu of physical gifts. These videos are determined by the participant's Wishlist, which is comprised of answers to certain questions, such as:

• Favorite Artist?
• Favorite Broadway Show?
• Favorite Christmas Song?

Once the Secret Santas are drawn, participants will view their partner's wishlist, choose a song that applies to their musical tastes or wishes, and create a homemade Karaoke video. Once done, the video is uploaded to YouTube and the link is delivered to the gift recipient before Christmas. Then, on Christmas morning participants will open their mailbox and see their wonderful gift: your heart and soul poured into a personalized Karaoke video!

So, please, if you haven't already, join us in spreading Holiday cheer and love in a very unique way this year! If you know anyone who would be interested in doing this, please send their e-mails my way at karaokesecret@gmail.com, so I may send an invite.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND MERRY CHRISTMAS!

 

Peace,

Joe R.

Creator/Administrator

 

Posted by Pam (Assistant)