diff --git a/src/components/constants.ts b/src/components/constants.ts
index 36eae99..6758bbb 100644
--- a/src/components/constants.ts
+++ b/src/components/constants.ts
@@ -15,3 +15,8 @@ export const controlIds = {
   volumeHighButton: "volume-high-button",
   volumeLowButton: "volume-low-button",
 };
+
+/**
+ * How often to emit currentTime updates.
+ */
+export const videoSyncInterval = 500;
diff --git a/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/usePlayPauseControl.ts b/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/usePlayPauseControl.ts
index ea6392b..cdcc10d 100644
--- a/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/usePlayPauseControl.ts
+++ b/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/usePlayPauseControl.ts
@@ -4,10 +4,11 @@ import { controls, videoElement } from "@components/elements";
 import { useRoomContext } from "@connection/RoomContext";
 
 import { useEmitOnClick } from "../useEmitOnClick";
+import { videoSyncInterval } from "@components/constants";
 
 export const usePlayPauseControl = () => {
   const { originalRoomData, roomData } = useRoomContext();
-  const { currentTime, playing } = roomData.get();
+  const { playing } = roomData.get();
 
   useEmitOnClick(controls.playPauseButton, (oldRoomData) => ({
     currentTime: videoElement.currentTime,
@@ -22,10 +23,13 @@ export const usePlayPauseControl = () => {
     } else {
       videoElement.pause();
     }
-  }, [currentTime, playing]);
+  }, [playing]);
 
   useEffect(() => {
-    videoElement.currentTime = originalRoomData.currentTime;
+    // Video timing is, on average, behind by half of the sync interval.
+    // currentTime is also measured in seconds instead of milliseconds for some reason.
+    videoElement.currentTime =
+      originalRoomData.currentTime + videoSyncInterval / 2000;
 
     if (originalRoomData.playing) {
       videoElement.play();
diff --git a/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/useTimeSynchronization.ts b/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/useTimeSynchronization.ts
index 60b0f35..92fd468 100644
--- a/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/useTimeSynchronization.ts
+++ b/src/pages/room/RoomEvents/useVideoControls/useTimeSynchronization.ts
@@ -3,22 +3,20 @@ import { useInterval } from "react-use";
 
 import { videoElement } from "@components/elements";
 import { useRoomContext } from "@connection/RoomContext";
-
-/**
- * How often to emit currentTime updates.
- */
-const videoElementSyncInterval = 1000;
+import { videoSyncInterval } from "@components/constants";
 
 export const useTimeSynchronization = () => {
   const { emitRoomData, roomData } = useRoomContext();
   const { currentTime, playing } = roomData.get();
 
-  // Constantly update the server on the current time of the video
+  // Constantly update the server on the current time of the video if playing
   useInterval(() => {
-    emitRoomData({
-      currentTime: videoElement.currentTime,
-    });
-  }, videoElementSyncInterval);
+    if (playing) {
+      emitRoomData({
+        currentTime: videoElement.currentTime,
+      });
+    }
+  }, videoSyncInterval);
 
   // If the video is paused, we can safely match its time to currentTime
   useEffect(() => {
diff --git a/src/server/events/karaoke.ts b/src/server/events/karaoke.ts
index 529697e..209261f 100644
--- a/src/server/events/karaoke.ts
+++ b/src/server/events/karaoke.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+import { isEqual } from "lodash";
+
 import { KaraokeEvent } from "@shared/events";
 import { RoomDataUpdatedData, SetUsernameData } from "@shared/types";
 
@@ -29,7 +31,29 @@ export const karaokeEvents = ({
   socket.on(KaraokeEvent.RoomDataUpdated, (data: RoomDataUpdatedData) => {
     log(`Updated jukebox: ${JSON.stringify(data)}`);
 
-    room.data = { ...room.data, ...data };
-    io.in(room.name).emit(KaraokeEvent.RoomDataUpdated, room.data);
+    // We declare a new "player" for the room if they're saying to play while paused.
+    const newPlayer =
+      data.playing && !room.data.playing ? person.id : room.data.player;
+
+    const newData = {
+      ...room.data,
+      ...data,
+
+      // Ignore currentTime updates from any client who didn't click the play button.
+      // This is a somewhat arbitrary measure to stop "currentTime battles", wherein
+      // two clients go back and forth sending vastly different times to each other.
+      currentTime:
+        newPlayer === person.id
+          ? data.currentTime ?? room.data.currentTime
+          : room.data.currentTime,
+      player: newPlayer,
+    };
+
+    if (isEqual(room.data, newData)) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    room.data = newData;
+    io.in(room.name).emit(KaraokeEvent.RoomDataUpdated, newData);
   });
 };
diff --git a/src/shared/types.ts b/src/shared/types.ts
index c4c2a1c..1c4b119 100644
--- a/src/shared/types.ts
+++ b/src/shared/types.ts
@@ -38,6 +38,11 @@ export type RoomData = {
    */
   environment: string;
 
+  /**
+   * Client ID of the last person to trigger the play button.
+   */
+  player?: PersonId;
+
   /**
    * Whether the current song is playing.
    */