I’m just singing with my friends…

Since launching in February, London’s Anthem Karaoke Club has become a word-of-mouth hit, drawing in the city’s fashion pack every other month for a night of hooting and howling. The brainchild of founders Fiona Hartley and Zac Klein (both creative types in the fashion game), Anthem – also known as Singing with My Friends – feels like stumbling into an old-school pub singalong, only with added Fidan Novruzova boots and Chopova Lowena skirts.

Taking place at a different venue each time – the last edition was at legendary East London ​“gentlemen’s club” Metropolis – you might, on any given evening, bump into designers Sinéad O’Dwyer and Olly Shinder, fashion writers Osman Ahmed and Mahoro Seward, stylists America Korban and Ch’lita Collins, or Shaad Magazine founder Shaad ​“Magazine” D’Souza (if you want to break into the ​“creative industries”, you could do worse than rocking up here with your portfolio and a blinding rendition of Cher’s Believe).

In a fashion scene that’s hardly filled with wallflowers, Anthem is an opportunity to unleash your inner performer. ​“Everyone seems to hate karaoke until there’s a microphone in their hand,” says Fiona. Someone pass us the song sheet…

Hello Zac and Fiona! Is Anthem just a way to fulfil your lifelong dream of being pop stars?

Zac: Ha! We just wanted to do something together, bring our friends along and not make it not serious. It’s not formal in any way: it’s everyone getting together, being a bit silly, dressing up, and having fun.

Fiona: In the context of London nightlife – not to get all London nightlife‑y – we felt there was no in between. You go for a drink or to a rave. We felt like there was nowhere it could be a mix of both, and you still got to dress up.

Before Anthem, what was your place of choice for an afters?

Fiona: Oh, I feel like we would always end up at random people’s birthday parties and our friends would end up hogging the mic for the entire night.

Zac: We’re opportunist karaoke superstars. Fiona came to my sister’s wedding in Australia in April and we went to karaoke four times in one night.

Fiona: Just us two.

Zac: Everyone wants to be a superstar! You feel awkward at first. There’s this British stiff upper-lip thing where nobody wants to be the first person. So every time we host a karaoke night, Fiona and I always have to be the first people on the mic.

What was the first event like?

Fiona: The first one was sort of a test-drive and it was an after party for a dinner we did for [designer] Aaron [Esh] in February. I mean, that was amazing, because we had [Primal Scream’s] Bobby Gillespie there and he sang one of the first songs. That was the moment we thought, ​“Oh, people really like this!”

What was your go-to karaoke song that night?

Fiona: Honestly, I was probably trying to impress a boy, so it was Pulp’s Common People or something really indie.

Zac: My go-to song then and now is always Fergie’s Fergalicious. I know every word. I don’t need prompts to impress a boy.

Neither of you grew up in London. What were your expectations of nightlife when you moved?

Zac: My idea of London nightlife was reading about [designer] Charles Jeffrey [whose label Loverboy started as an East London club night in 2014] and PDA [a Black and Brown queer night that ran for 10 years from 2011], who are now friends of mine. After that, it felt like artists and designers weren’t hanging out together anymore. But recently, I feel like London has had a real bar resurgence – it feels like every two weeks someone’s saying they saw Charli xcx at a bar on Kingsland Road!

Fiona: I grew up an hour outside of Manchester, in a small town called Blackburn, but nightlife was very much fuelled by music and bands. There was Molloys, a karaoke bar that everyone would go to before a gig. When I moved to London in 2015, there were all these nights taking off at [tiny Dalston venue] Vogue Fabrics.

OK, time to dispel a karaoke myth: good singers can’t participate in karaoke. Right or wrong?

Fiona: I don’t believe that. If you’re a good singer and you’re giving a performance, that’s different.

Zac: My rule is you have to sing. None of this pussyfooting around the microphone. Like, everyone wants to do it. I can see it.

Besides you two, who always hits the mic first?

Fiona: Last time, there was a girl that I met at All Points East that I randomly invited – we were still setting up when she was singing!

Zac: Also, Calvin of Charms [handsome ice cream man featured in the last issue] – he’s a secret karaoke obsessive!

Fiona: He’s a mic-hogger. Oh, yes! Another rule: don’t be a mic-hogger; it’s not fun for anyone but you. [Sorry, Calvin.]

Finally, I hear you guys have a list of ​“perfect” karaoke songs. Are you going to publish it online?

Fiona: We both have revolving lists in our Notes app of songs that we’re always updating. There are no bad karaoke songs!

Zac: We’re going to publish a list. But do you know what the best song is?! Years ago, when me and Fiona met, we went to [East London pub] the Spread Eagle. And oh, my god, we did Everytime We Touch by Cascada.

Fiona: The crowd was screaming and onstage, but then we did it again and forgot about the, like, six-minute long instrumental. It was so awkward.

Zac: Next time, we’ll have a dance break. We have a few surprises for the end of the year.