Don't Forget the Lyrics!
Don't Forget the Lyrics! is an international game show in the United States and United Kingdom. The American show originally aired on Fox from July 11, 2007 to June 19, 2009 and after a year off the air, a third overall season, and first as a syndicated show, began on June 15, 2010 in daytime syndication and in primetime on VH1 and in primetime on MyNetworkTV on October 5, 2010. On March 24, 2011, the show was canceled. The show has spun off to numerous countries outside America using different top prize or game format.
The primary difference between Don't Forget the Lyrics! and other music-based game shows is that artistic talent is irrelevant to the contestants' chances of winning. In the words of one of their commercials prior to the first airing, "You don't have to sing it well; you just have to sing it right."
Gameplay
Each game is played by a single contestant who earns money incrementally based on a payout ladder by completing missing song lyrics on up to ten songs, testing the contestant's memory on songs. The following description of the show is based primarily on the U.S. version of Don't Forget the Lyrics!, though the general format applies to all international versions.The contestant is presented and chooses from a set of nine different genres. Two different songs were then presented to the contestant to choose one to sing, then the host inform on how many missing words the contestant must provide. The band or an ensemble will play the music and sings along, karaoke-style until the music stops, in which the monitor will display blank lines. In some versions such as Taiwan version, an alert marker will inform the contestant on the upcoming line. The contestant then fills in the missing lyrics, and chose whether to risk their accumulated winnings by locking-in the lyrics. To advance to the next level, all the lyrics must be correct without singing any incorrect words, otherwise the game ends and the contestant leaves with the last guaranteed amount or nothing depending on the level they lost. Before locking the lyrics, the contestant can end the game and leave with the current accumulated winnings won up to the point.
The contestant is also presented with three "Backups" that help the contestant but may only be used once throughout a game:
- Backup Singer: The contestant receive assistance from one of two support members to help the contestant. The contestant may opt to choose their own lyrics or by going with their backup singer's lyrics if it is different.
- Two Words: The contestant chooses any two of the missing words to complete the lyrics. In the Taiwanese version, Two Words backup provide only one missing word and is chosen at random.
- Three Lines: The contestant is given a set of three lines, among which one line is correct; any common words that shares within the three lines are automatically highlighted green.
In some versions, notably the Taiwanese version, the contestant must require to sing the lyrics correctly even during the sing-along, but missing too many lyrics while the music plays may prompt the player to stop singing and is given the option to either end the game or try again, or prematurely ending the game with the same penalty as incorrect lyrics given.
International versions
| Country | Name | Host | Channel | Premiere | Top prize | Wikipedia Language page |
| ' | Sing & Win | Rainhard Fendrich | ATV | March 6, 2008 | €50,000 | |
| ' | Don't Forget the Lyrics! | Mitchel Musso | MuchMore | - | ||
| ' | On connaît la chanson! | Mario Tessier | TVA | September 25, 2011 | 200,000$ | |
| ' | No te olvides de la Canción!! | Rafael Araneda | Chilevisión | $20,000,000 | ||
| ' | Ne zaboravi stihove! | Igor Mešin | Nova TV | March 17, 2008 | kn500,000 | |
| ' | Så det synger | Michael Carøe | TV2 | March 22, 2008 | 500.000Kr | |
| ' | فاكر ولا لأ؟ Faker wella la? | Amir Karara | ERT 2 and NTN | 2009 | 250.000E£ | |
| ' | N'oubliez pas les paroles! | Nagui | France 2 | December 2007 | €∞ | :fr:N'oubliez pas les paroles ! |
| ' | Δεν εχω λογια Den echo logia | Giorgos Kapoutzidis | Mega Channel | November 2015 | €10,000 | |
| ' | Popdaráló | Kovács Áron | TV2 | March 14, 2008 | 3,000.000Ft. | :hu:Popdaráló |
| ' | Bol Baby Bol | Adnan Sami | Life OK | November 9, 2007 – April 11, 2008 | Rs.2,500,000 | |
| ' | Missing Lyrics | Irgi Ahmad Fahrezi | Trans TV | Rp.100.000.000 | ||
| ' | شعر یادت نره Sher yadet nare | Omid Khalili Tajrishi | Manoto 1 | September 14, 2012 | US$10,000 | |
| ' | Sing it | Asi Azar | Channel 2 | - | ||
| ' | Canta e Vinci | Amadeus and Checco Zalone | Italia 1 | December 18, 2007 – April 10, 2008 | €250,000 | :it:Canta e Vinci |
| ' | Jangan Lupa Lirik! | Aznil Nawawi | Astro Ria | May 25, 2008 | RM1,000,000 | :ms:Jangan Lupa Lirik |
| ' | ¿Te la sabes? Cántala | Chuck Pereda | Azteca 7 | October 10, 2007 | MX$500,000 | |
| ' | Prave riječi | Nikola Đuričko | TV Vijesti | 2012 | €5,000 | |
| ' | Don't Forget the Lyrics! | Television New Zealand | - | |||
| ' | Don't Forget the Lyrics | Kamal Salau | All Major stations | 2008 | N20,000,000 | |
| ' | Kan du teksten? | Tshawe Baqwa and Yosef Wolde-Mariam | TV2 | April 2008 | 500,000Kr | - |
| ' | Tak to leciało! | Maciej Miecznikowski | TVP2 | March 9, 2008 – June 3, 2012 | 150,000zł | :pl:Tak to leciało! |
| ' | Из Песни Слов Не Выкинешь Iz Pesni Slov Ne Vykinesh | Vyacheslav Manucharov | NTV Pyatnica! | August 31, 2013 | Main prize: Flat in Moscow | |
| ' | Don't Forget the Lyrics! | Gurmit Singh Adrian Pang | MediaCorp Channel 5 | November 27, 2008 | S$500,000 | :zh:我要唱下去 |
| ' | 我要唱下去 | Zeng Guo Cheng | MediaCorp Channel 8 | August 25, 2009 | S$500,000 | :zh:我要唱下去 |
| ' | 我要唱下去 | Mark Lee | MediaCorp Channel 8 | June 1, 2010 | S$50,000 | :zh:我要唱下去 |
| ' | LYRICS - Vyspievaj si milión! | Andrej Bičan | TV JOJ | February 22, 2008 | €100,000 | |
| ' | ¡No te olvides de la canción! | Àngel Llàcer | La Sexta | September 26, 2008 | €100,000 | |
| ' | 百萬大歌星 Million Singer | Harlem Yu | TTV | May 10, 2008 – August 11, 2012 | NTD300,000 | :zh:百萬大歌星 |
| ' | لسه فاكر Lessa faker | Sami Fehri | El Hiwar El Tounsi | September 22, 2015 | TND20,000 | |
| ' | Don't Forget the Lyrics! | Shane Richie | Sky1 | May 11, 2008 | £250,000 | |
| ' | Don't Forget the Lyrics! | Wayne Brady | FOX | July 11, 2007 | US$1,000.000 | |
| ' | Don't Forget the Lyrics! | Mark McGrath | Syndication | June 15, 2010 | US$50,000 | |
| ' | Trò Chơi Âm Nhạc – Don't Forget the Lyrics | Nguyên Khang Quốc Minh | VTV3 | November 7, 2012 – December 30, 2015 | 100,000,000₫ |
Australia
The Australian version was rumoured to be airing on Network Ten in late 2008, with a jackpot of $500,000, after strong ratings to the US version over the summer non-ratings period. However, there has never been any confirmation and no production has begun. This may be due to lower ratings for episodes of the US version airing during the ratings period.Austria
The Austrian version premiered on March 6, 2008 and aired on ATV titled Sing & Win. It is hosted by Rainhard Fendrich. The jackpot for this version is €50,000. So far, only one person managed to win the jackpot: the female singer .Croatia
The Croatian version premiered on March 17, 2008 and aired on Nova TV titled Ne zaboravi stihove!. It is hosted by Igor Mešin. The jackpot for this version is 500.000kn.Danish version
The Danish version premiered 22 March 2008 and aired on TV 2 Denmark titled Så det synger. It is hosted by Michael Carøe. The jackpot for this version is DKK 500.000.France
The French version premiered in December 2007 and aired on France 2, titled N'oubliez pas les paroles!. It is hosted by Nagui. The jackpot for this version is €100,000.Since April 7, 2014, a new version is aired and the jackpot is now €20,000.
In the new version, there are 2 contestants and, at the end, only one can try to win at most €20,000, the other is eliminated. The finalist of the previous episode comes back in the next episode and tries to reach the final. When they lose, they keep all the money previously won.
In July 2018, Kevin Benac became the candidate that won the biggest amount of money. In January 2019, Renaud Vlies won the biggest number of episodes, and is the second biggest winner
A special episode, 100% Tubes, aired on 11 June 2016 featuring four pairs of celebrities playing for up to €150,000 to be split among their chosen charities. In the final round, Gérard Holtz and Amir worked together to win €90,000 for the four charities.
Greece
The Greek version premiered in November 2015 and is airing on Mega Channel, titled Den Eho Logia. It is hosted by Greek actor and scriptwriter, Giorgos Kapoutzidis. The jackpot for this version is €10,000.Hungary
The Hungarian version premiered on March 14, 2008 and aired on TV2 titled Popdaráló. It is hosted by Kovács Áron. The jackpot for this version is 3,000.000 Ft.India
The Indian version premiered on November 9, 2007 and aired on STAR One titled Bol Baby Bol. It is hosted by Adnan Sami The jackpot for this version is Rs. 2,500,000. They have had one winner of the grand prize so far.Indonesia
An Indonesian version, titled Missing Lyrics, airs on Trans TV. The top prize for this version is 100.000.000 Rupiah.Iran
The Iranian version of Don't Forget the Lyrics called "Sher yadet nare" premiered on September 14, 2012 and aired on Manoto 1.Hosted by Omid Khalili Tajrishi. فارسى The jackpot for this version is US$10,000.Israel
The Israeli version for "Don't forget the lyrics" is called Sing it. The host of the show Is Asi Azar. The show is broadcast on Channel 2 television.Italy
The Italian version aired for a pilot on December 2007 on Italia 1 titled Canta e Vinci, then it had a season split between Spring and Summer. It is hosted by Amadeus & Checco Zalone. The jackpot for this version is €250,000.Malaysia
The Malaysian version premiered on May 25, 2008 and aired on Astro Ria titled Jangan Lupa Lirik!. It is hosted by Aznil Nawawi The jackpot for this version is RM1,000,000.Mexico
The Mexican version was aired on TV Azteca and it is called ¿Te la sabes? Cántala.New Zealand Version
The New Zealand Version The Singing Bee, Television New ZealandNorwegian version
The Norwegian version is hosted by Tshawe Baqwa and Yosef Wolde-Mariam from the Norwegian hip hop/rap band Madcon. It is aired on TV 2.Poland
The Polish version premiered on March 9, 2008 and aired on TVP2 titled Tak to leciało!. It is hosted by Maciej Miecznikowski. The jackpot for this version is zloty 150,000.Singapore
The Singapore version, hosted by Singapore Idol host Gurmit Singh, premiered on 27 November 2008 on MediaCorp Channel 5. It airs every Thursday night at 8.00pm. Contestants will sing their way to the top prize of S$500,000.Two Mandarin version of Don't Forget the Lyrics were aired, both airing on 8pm every Tuesdays. The first version premiered on 25 August 2009 was hosted by Taiwanese host Sam Tseng, and the series produced 14 episodes, four of which were celebrity episodes. The second version which featured entirely celebrities premiered on 1 June 2010, and was hosted by Singaporean comedian Mark Lee.
Slovak version
The Slovak version premiered on February 22, 2008 and aired on TV JOJ titled LYRICS - Vyspievaj si milión!. It is hosted by Andrej Bičan. The jackpot for this version is now 100,000 euros because Slovakia is joining the Eurozone, which results in the 1,000,000 koruna prize being dropped.Spanish version
The Spanish version premiered on September 2008 with the name "No te olvides de la canción". It is aired at La Sexta and hosted by Operación Triunfo academy's former director Àngel Llàcer. The jackpot prize is €100,000.Taiwan
The Taiwan version is called ":zh:百萬大歌星", hosted by Harlem Yu. This program is aired in Taiwan Television Enterprise, Ltd. and TVBS Asia. The top prize is NTD300,000. The Taiwan version premiered on 10 May 2008 and ended on 11 August 2012. Unlike other versions, there is an alert system to indicate on the next line, and using a no-guarantee progression level.United Kingdom
The UK version premiered on May 11, 2008 and aired on Sky One titled Don't Forget the Lyrics!. It is hosted by Shane Richie. The jackpot for this version is £250,000.United States
There have been two U.S. versions titled Don't Forget the Lyrics!.- The original ran from July 11, 2007 to June 19, 2009, airing on FOX. It was hosted by Wayne Brady with a $1,000,000 jackpot.
- The second version premiered in September 2010 as a daily syndicated game show from 20th Television, and is hosted by Mark McGrath with a $50,000 jackpot.