The Rules

We are a vibrant, inclusive, independently led Baltimore community where karaoke is a team sport and self-expression takes center stage! 

Respect for All 

Charm City Karaoke League (CCKL) is an inclusive space where all are welcome. Participants agree to treat all others (audience members, participants, league, and venue staff) with respect. Should conflict arise, CCKL staff will endeavor to facilitate an open dialogue between concerned parties. Those who are deemed unable to continue honoring this commitment will be suspended from league play (without refund). You can email us if you have any questions, comments, or complaints about this policy at mic@charmcitykaraoke.com.

League Rules & Regular Season Play

Performers

• Every league member (performer) must be 21 years of age or older and must have read and agreed to the league rules and waiver of liability during registration.

  • By signing the League waiver, performers are giving Charm City Karaoke League permission to share their photos on their social media and other marketing materials.

  • If you would like to opt out of having your image shared, notify us at mic@charmcitykaraoke.com

• All performers must abide by alcohol restrictions and any other guidelines provided by the host venue.

  • These are subject to change as determined by the venue.

    • Specifically: 

      • No outside alcoholic beverages 

      • No standing on the bar or tables

      • No open flames, fireworks or sparklers 

      • Keep performances scent-free and try to steer clear of anything that might cause an allergic reaction including lighting incense and candles or spraying perfumes. 

      • No untethered helium balloons or anything else that might get stuck on the ceiling 

      • No nudity: All costumes must provide full coverage of the chest and buttocks.

        • Coverage should be opaque and remain in place at all times (e.g., pasties alone are not permitted, and thong-style garments must include visible fabric coverage).

• Performers must follow all local laws and regulations. 

• Disrespectful or otherwise problematic league members may be subject to disciplinary actions, including, but not limited to, disqualification, suspension, or expulsion from league activities. 

Season Format

• Team leagues consist of an 8-week regular season, followed by two additional weeks for the Semifinal and Final rounds.

• Each week of league play, teams compete over three consecutive rounds. 

  • In the first round, there can be up to two performers.

  • In the second round, there can be up to four performers. 

  • In the group round, all members can perform. 

• Team order is determined during Week 1.

• Each team will draw a number that will determine their order for the first week.

  • Each following week, the order will shift down so the first team in Week 1 will be the second team for Week 2, the last team in Week 1 will be the first team in Week 2, etc. 

• The first week of the season is anything goes, there will be no costumes, props or themes.

• The rest of the weeks will have a theme.

  • Themes might be genre-based (e.g., Country Week), centered around a specific time period or artist (e.g., One Name Artists, 1980s Week), and/or less literal themes (e.g., Memento Mori—Songs Commemorating the Dead, Twilight—Songs About Vampires, Nightfall, or Transitions).

• Each season, four or six teams of no less than six (6) performers and no more than ten (10) performers each may compete, unless otherwise permitted by league staff.

  • Creating a team does not guarantee you all ten 10 spots.

  • CCKL staff will do their best to honor the wishes of team managers and members; however, performers may be reassigned to ensure equity across the teams. 

Team Managing & Song Selection

• One member from each team shall serve as the team manager.

  • A team manager is responsible for submitting songs, requesting substitutions, and being a point of contact with league staff.

  • If a team manager is unable to perform their duties on any given week, they may appoint another team member to act as manager for that week.

• Team managers must submit songs at least 48 hours in advance of competition play.  

  • Song selection is on a first-come, first-served basis and can only be sung once during each week of play.

  • If for whatever reason, a chosen song is not available, CCKL staff will let Team Managers know within 48 hours. 

    • Emergencies can happen; teams should communicate with league staff if a song needs to be replaced within 48 hours of the performance.  

Performing

• Each league participant must be a performer in at least one round one or round two performance during the regular season.

  • Team managers must work to ensure an equitable rotation of performers throughout the season.

    • Exceptions may be made if they are communicated to League staff in advance (e.g., if a performer drops out, is unresponsive, or an emergency occurs).  

• Audience members, CCKL team, and/or venue staff may not be used as props or participants in the performance.

  • Performers, however, are free to interact respectfully with audience members if they indicate their consent.   

• All team members may assist with setting up before a performance (in any round) and cleaning up after a performance, but both activities should take no more than 90 seconds.

  • They will receive no support or materials from CCKL staff for their performance.

  • Any performance props that cannot be thoroughly cleaned within one minute are strictly prohibited (e.g., silly string sprayed onto a tarp vs. silly string sprayed all over the venue’s light fixtures).

  • All competition materials and detritus must be thoroughly cleaned by the responsible team(s) before leaving the venue for the night. 

Voting & Scoring

• Anyone physically present at the venue during league play is eligible to vote in the competition. 

  • Any attempt to cast a vote from outside the venue will not be counted and may result in team disqualification. 

  • Attempts to submit multiple votes by the same voter will be eliminated by our software. 

  • At no time is it appropriate to vote for teams in any manner that does not reflect a face value opinion of the performance.

    • If it is determined that a team or its affiliates are purposely voting against a team or teams without regard to their performance, the League reserves the right to take necessary actions to remedy such activities.

• Voting for each round will open at the end of the last performance of the round and remain open for at least 10 minutes, until the next round begins. 

• For Rounds 1 & 2, teams will be divided into two clusters (Cluster A & Cluster B) and voters will choose between 3 matchups in each cluster.

  • Each matchup in these rounds are worth 2 points and each round has two matchups between teams, so there is a total possibility of 4 points. 

• Voters will separately rank their top 3 performances in Rounds 1 & 2.

  • The performance ranked the highest will be declared Top Performer and win a prize. 

• The group round will be determined by each team’s scores from Rounds 1 & 2.

  • The team with the most points from each cluster will face off in the first matchup (Cluster A Seed 1 Team vs Cluster B Seed 1 Team).

  • The team with the second most points from each cluster will face off in the second matchup (Cluster A Seed 2 Team vs Cluster B Seed 2 Team).

  • The team with the third most points from each cluster will face off in the third matchup (Cluster A Seed 3 Team vs Cluster B Seed 3 Team).

• If a team wins its matchup in round 3, they are awarded 8 points. 

  • In the case of ties between matchup points from rounds 1 and 2, round 3 placement will be determined by number of votes.

• The team with the highest combined score from all three rounds (those of individuals in Rounds 1 and 2 and the group round 3) will be declared the winning team of the night and will receive a prize.

Finals and Semi-Finals 

• At the end of regular season play, all acts that won top performance during the regular season will be eligible to compete for the “League MVP” award.

  • This award will be presented at the end of the night during semi-finals and will be determined by voting, which will open at the close of regular season play and run until the start of semi-finals.

  • Voters will rank all of the performances of the season, and the top ranked performance will win the prize.

  • Any person is eligible to cast one vote for the League MVP.

    • All those who vote must have a valid email and any attempt at duplicate or bad faith voting may result in a performance being disqualified from end of season awards. 

• In addition to the League MVP award, any member of the Charm City Karaoke League can nominate another member for a “Mic Drop Award.”

  • Each team will give one award to someone on their team and one award to someone on another team.

  • These are fun awards that honor players who did something extraordinary or went above and beyond during the season and nominators can choose the award being given (e.g Becca for the Best Use of Silly String Award or Tom for the Best Dad Dancing).

  • Team managers will need to submit their nominations by the Monday before semi-finals and they will be given out during semi-finals. 

• At the conclusion of the regular season, team standings (total points accrued by teams and their members) will be used to determine each team's postseason rank.

  • If, at the end of the regular season, two or more teams finish with identical point values, a random drawing of tied teams will determine postseason seeding.  

• During the Semifinals and Finals, points are awarded from both judges and voting: 

  • A panel of judges will award up to 15 points based on a rubric similar to the voting system used during the regular season. 

  • The public will also cast a ranked-choice vote.

    • The top group based on audience voting will get 15 additional points.

    • The second-highest ranked will get 10 additional points and third highest-ranked will get 5 additional points. 

• During Semifinals, the two teams with the highest number of points from the regular season will not compete.

  • They will each perform one number (solo, small group, or whole group) as an exhibition only.

  • Their advance to the Finals is guaranteed.

• The remaining teams will compete in a solo, duet, and group round, similar to a regular competition.

  • They will compete in the order of their ranking, with the team with the third-highest overall points going first and the team with the fewest points overall going last.

  • There will be no theme, and the teams are able to choose any song from the CCKL’s songbook for their performances.

• The two teams that receive the most points during Semifinals will advance to the finals.

  • During Finals, any remaining teams (the bottom 2) will not compete, but will each perform an exhibition number (solo, small group, or whole group). 

• The team with the top number of points given during the Finals round will be named CCKL League Champion and be given medals and a free private karaoke party of their choosing.

  • The team with the second-highest number of points will receive runner-up medals.

Changes & Concerns

• Any changes to these rules will happen after the season has concluded based on staff and participant feedback. 

• If there is a need to change the rules mid-season, these changes will be decided on by league staff and be put to a vote by team managers.

  • The rules will only be changed if a majority of team managers have approved the change.

  • The only exception to this policy is for rule changes requested by the venue or any change needed to ensure the safety of staff and participants.