Music Bingo - Hosting a Game

Game Night Script: Running a Music Bingo Night

A practical runbook and talk track for the person actually running the room: a bartender, DJ, or event host. It assumes you have Music Bingo (the host app, on Mac, iPad, or iPhone) and, if you're using digital cards, that your players have Music Bingo Companion on their phones. Nothing here is invented: every control name in backticks is a real button, toggle, or label in the app.

1. Before the night

A week out

Task	Notes
Pick a theme	80s night, one-hit wonders, a decade, a genre. Anything with a clear identity is easier to build a playlist around.
Build the playlist	Use Connect Apple Music and `Import Songs from Playlist` if you have Apple Music, or `Manual Playlist…` to paste a list, import an Exportify CSV, or load the built-in demo.
Decide card count	Free tier caps you at 10 cards / 40 songs. If you expect more players, or want a bigger printed deck, Music Bingo Pro ($14.99 one-time, no subscription) removes both limits.
Check your song count	You need at least 24 songs, and the app defaults to a minimum of 30. Use the small calculator icon next to `Minimum playlist songs` on Setup (the Playlist Length Calculator) to size your list to your actual card count and round count. More cards and more rounds both call for more songs, so a full deck with several rounds wants more than the bare minimum.
Decide printed vs. digital	Printed cards need a printer, paper, and daubers or pens on the tables. Digital cards go out through Music Bingo Companion: players join with a QR code or 6-character code and mark cards on their own phone, no paper or pens needed. You can mix both in the same session.
Set win patterns and prizes	On Setup's `Payout Rounds`, set each round's name, pattern, and prize, or just use `Restore Default Rounds` (four Single Line rounds then a Blackout grand prize) and edit the prizes.

Day of

Task	Notes
Generate cards	On Setup, tap `Generate Cards`. If you already have cards, the button reads `Regenerate Cards` and will warn you: only regenerate before you print or hand anything out, since it replaces every card in the deck.
Print, if going paper	Use the `Print…` menu next to Generate: `1 card per page` for full-size cards, `2 cards per page` to save paper. Print, then cut if you chose two-up.
Print a Join Sheet, if going digital	From the digital cards screen, `Print Join Sheet…` produces a one-page sheet with the session's join QR code, the plain `Session Code`, and a QR to the Companion app's App Store page. Post it at the door or on each table.
Test audio	Play a song through the actual house speaker at the actual volume you'll use. If you're using in-app Apple Music playback, confirm `Shuffle & Play` starts and the queue advances.
Gear check	Speaker, mic if you're calling loudly over music, the device running Music Bingo (charged, plus its charger), the device or stand for the printed Join Sheet if using digital cards, prizes, and (for printed cards) daubers or pens on every table.
Sanity-check the flow once	Play one song, mark it, confirm the match panel updates. Then use `Reset Game` on Setup to clear that test run before doors open: it keeps your cards and playlist, only clearing played songs and winners.

2. Room setup (30 minutes before doors)

Sound check: play a clip at the volume you'll actually run, from the back of the room.
Cards or Join Sheet on tables: printed cards and pens if going paper; the Join Sheet propped up or taped down if going digital.
Device on charger: plug in whatever is running Music Bingo. Don't run the whole night on battery.
Wi-Fi check: if you're using digital cards, confirm your device and a test phone can both join a network and load the join page before players arrive.
Open the session: load your .musicbingo file, confirm the footer shows the right song/card counts, and go to the Play screen. It should not say Not Ready to Play (if it does, you're missing a playlist or a generated deck).
Hand out or announce: pass out printed cards table by table, or point to the Join Sheet and announce the code out loud a couple of times as people trickle in.

3. Host script: opening

Read this once the room has enough people to start, roughly a minute:

"Alright, welcome to Music Bingo! Here's how it works: I'm going to play a short clip of a song. If you know it, find it on your card and mark it. That's it: no categories, no trick questions, just music you already know."

"If you're playing on your phone tonight, grab the Music Bingo Companion app, scan the QR code on your table, or type in the code up here: [read the code]. It'll ask how many cards you want (go ahead and pick) and you're in."

"First round tonight is a single line: any full row, column, or diagonal, straight across, up and down, or corner to corner. Center square is always free, it counts no matter what."

"When you've got it, yell BINGO, loud, so I hear you over the music. I'll call you up, check your card, and if it's good, you win. One rule: be honest with yourselves. If it's not quite there yet, I promise there's another round coming."

Adjust the house rules line to your room. Common additions: no using a phone to identify songs unless it's through the Companion app's own Listen feature (if you've turned that on for the session), and only one bingo verified at a time so the game doesn't stall.

4. Round flow (repeat this loop)

Play a clip. Whether that's Shuffle & Play in-app or you cueing it yourself.
Mark it in the app. If you're linked to Apple Music with Auto-mark on, this happens for you. Otherwise tap the circle next to the song in the list, or use Enable Shazam to let the app listen and mark it for you.
Talk between songs. Keep it short: you're the pacing, not the entertainment.
Watch the match panel. It shows Cards that can call BINGO, a heads-up list of Cards one song away, and a Blackout Watch progress bar. Use "one away" to build a little tension out loud if it fits the room.
Someone calls BINGO. Open Verify, and either type their card ID or use the camera button to scan the QR code printed on their card. You'll get a green VALID BINGO or a red Not a winner yet. Trust the app, not the shouting.
Award it. Tap Award BINGO!, announce the winner, hand over the prize, and move to the next round.

A few lines to fill the gaps:

"That's four in a row now who've got one square left. It's getting tense over here."

"Nobody's called it yet, that tells me this next song is about to change somebody's night."

"Center square's still free, folks, it always counts."

5. Suggested three-round evening

Round	Pattern	Rough length	Notes
1	Single Line (any row, column, or diagonal)	15-20 minutes	Fast win, gets the room warmed up and confident.
2	Four Corners or Two Lines	20-25 minutes	Slightly harder, keeps people engaged without a long dry stretch.
3	Blackout (grand prize)	25-35 minutes	Save your best prize for this one. `Blackout Watch` on the Play screen tells you how close the room is getting.

Total run time for three rounds is usually 60-80 minutes of active play, not counting your opening and closing talk. If you want a longer night, add a round or two between 2 and 3: Add Round on Setup, or drag to reorder.

6. Closing

"That's a wrap for tonight, huge thanks for playing, and congratulations to everybody who won something. We'll be back here [next date/time] with a brand new set of songs, so bring your friends."

Hand out any remaining prizes, thank the venue by name if it's not your own bar, and mention next time by name and date if you have one.

7. Troubleshooting quick card

Problem	Do this
Audio dies mid-round	Switch to manual mode: play from any backup source (phone, house system) and mark songs by hand, or use `Enable Shazam` to keep auto-marking working without Apple Music playback.
Someone calls a false bingo	Always send them to `Verify` before announcing anything. A red `Not a winner yet` tells you how many more songs they need. Say so out loud and move on, no argument needed.
Someone joins late (digital cards)	They can still scan the Join Sheet's QR or type the `Session Code` at any point the session is open; they claim their cards and mark from that point on. The host can recap the last few songs played out loud if the room agrees.
Companion won't connect	Confirm they're on Wi-Fi or cell data, not a captive portal. If they still can't join, read the code back to them slowly: 6 characters, letters and numbers. Have them try `Scan Join QR Code` instead of typing if the code keeps failing.
Running low on songs	Don't regenerate cards mid-night: that invalidates every card already handed out, printed or digital. Stretch the list you have, or if you truly run dry, wrap the round in progress and call it there.