Carpool Karaoke, the viral segment from The Late Late Show where musicians and celebrities sing poular songs with host James Corden, is set to become its own series as part of Apple’s music streaming service Apple Music.
As The Hollywood Reporter reports, Apple’s Carpool Karaoke series is said to expand on the format of the original Carpool Karaoke, but Corden is not expected to be the series’ host.
Apple’s Carpool Karaoke series will be produced by CBS Television Studios and Fulwell 73, and will feature 16 weekly episodes when it launches in the near future, although no official date has been announced.
The Late Late Show‘s Carpool Karaoke segment has generated over 830 million YouTube views for the programme since it began in March 2015, and has seen the likes of Red Hot Chili Peppers wrestle and get weird, and Sia belt out her hits while failing at high fives.
Eddy Cue, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services, says Carpool Karaoke will sit nicely on the Apple Music platform.
“We love music, and Carpool Karaoke celebrates it in a fun and unique way that is a hit with audiences of all ages,” he says.
“It’s a perfect fit for Apple Music, bringing subscribers exclusive access to their favourite artists and celebrities who come along for the ride.”
Carpool Karaoke is one of Apple’s latest forays into original content, with the company also currently casting a reality series about app development titled Planet Of The Apps, but Cue says the tech giant isn’t trying to compete with the likes of Netflix and Comcast.
“We’re not in the business of trying to create TV shows,” Cue says. “If we see it being complementary to the things we’re doing at Apple Music or if we see it being something that’s innovative on our platform, we may help them and guide them and make suggestions.”
During an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert last month, Corden explained where the original idea for Carpool Karaoke came from, and revealed how unpopular it initially was. Watch him explain the segment’s history, below.
While Apple’s Carpool Karaoke series will screen exclusively on Apple Music, the original Carpool Karaoke will remain as a segment on The Late Late Show.
Watch: James Corden Explains The Original Idea Behind ‘Carpool Karaoke’
