Craig Robinson, host of 'Careoke Showdown' Courtesy of Spike TV
"I hope he's not upset about that," said Craig Robinson of the Spike TV show's similarities to the viral 'Late Late Show' segments. "I have nothing but respect for him."
Craig Robinson is very aware of the comparisons between Caraoke Showdown and Carpool Karaoke.
“I always say, I drive around saying I’m not James Corden!” he laughed to The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday night. He is set to host the former: a Spike TV game show that sees the Office alum picking up unsuspecting contestants and challenging them to karaoke-inspired challenges (with some surprises) for cash prizes. Described as Cash Cab meets karaoke, the 10-episode series will tape in L.A. and New York this summer for a 2017 premiere.
Though the premise is somewhat similar to Corden’s viral Carpool Karaoke segments on The Late Late Show — which have featured Adele, Justin Bieber, Stevie Wonder, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Michelle Obama, and is getting its own series edition on Apple Music — Robinson pointed out that his series lends the mic to “regular people on a game show, not great singers [on a late-night show].”
Still, the two are similar enough. “I hope he’s not upset about that,” Robinson told THR at a War Dogs premiere in New York City. “He’s a great host — I’ve been on his show and we did a duet, and it was right up my alley. He gets it. I have nothing but respect for him.”
So what does Robinson think of Corden’s Carpool Karaoke? At first, he said he’d seen a few and called them “brilliant,” but then he backtracked. “I lied when I said I’ve watched it — I’ve just seen pictures of him driving and smiling, and I know he can sing his ass off. I haven’t seen them. It’ll just come across my Facebook page, and I’ll check it out for a bit.”
Watch Robinson and Corden's Late Late Show duet below.
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