Time intervals....

[KaraokeJunkie]

I've been to many karaoke events and each KJ has their own rules on how the rotation and breaks are established.

I am a regular at one of the bars. It's not a big place but there is about 10-12 singers every friday on a regular day and would increase based on business. I love my KJ but he has a tendency of playing a full song in between each singer and sometimes the breaks can last around 15-20 minutes. Last week I got there about 11pm and we ended at 2:30am (3 1/2 hrs). There were about 10 singers and I sang 3 songs. The only reason I felt this was too long was because another singer asked if I wanted to go to another place that started at 8:00pm. I got there about 8:30 and left at 10:45pm and sang 5 songs (2 1/4 hrs.). They had the same amount of singers but without all of the long breaks.

I just wanted to know what you normally do as a KJ to keep AND increase the volume of singers and turns when you do karaoke....

[Marlena]

well although this does not answer your question, here is what i have to offer you. On saturday nights at the bar i play at i have singers that show up at 9 pm even though i don't start til 9:30 i have singers that travel for 45 minutes to my show. This past saturday one of the owner's approached me and told me that @ midnight some dancers would be in and HE wanted me to play their disk so they could dance for the patrons. I told him NO unless those songs were karaoke and one of my singers was to sing them. People come out for karaoke To sing, not to watch other poeple dance or to be entertained by the music in between songs. I have the SLOWEST player for loading ever and i am so embarrassed if there is more than a minute break between songs. I am paid to host karaoke and that is what i do. More than a minute break without a singer is a waste of good singing time. In certain instances there is no way around it. wrong disk numbers or video or equipment problems even those shouldn't be every night and shouldn't be repeated often.

I say NO to dj music during a karaoke show but that is just me.

Marlena

[Bigdog]

Why don't you use 2 players? There would be no down time.

Complain to the owner and take your business to the competition.

Bar owners are idiots that don't have a clue as to how to make all the money they could be making. They only think about how much the KJ costs them, not how much he makes them. A bad KJ can ruin a bars business real fast.

Just because you have a player and some discs, doesn't mean you know what to do with them.

I have followed many business killing "KJs."

[letitrip]

I love my KJ but he has a tendency of playing a full song in between each singer and sometimes the breaks can last around 15-20 minutes.

That's freakin' insane! As one who does use house music I'd never think of doing a full song after every singer, especially if I have a good rotation. 15-20 minutes is out of control and I'd say go somewhere else. To be fair to the the KJ and Bar Owner, let both know why you've chosen to take your business elsewhere.

As I said we do use house music. Fade to it between singers and if we hit a song that I can see the club is getting into, I'll let it run it's full course if the rotation warrants. If we're scrambling to get a large rotation taken care of, little house music is played beyond the time it takes the next singer to come up. I'd never dream of doing that after every singer and can't fathom a reason to go for 15-20 minutes. Sounds like either a KJ that is lazy or has a small rotation and doesn't understand how to manage it properly. However, if you're right about there being 10-12 singers, there's no way he shouldn't be able to fill a 4 hour show appropriately.

[djBe]

Break music is a tool in the KJ's belt. It can fix a show or bust it up. If I have two or three horrible singers in a row and don't know the caliber of the next singer, then you can be sure I'll play a GREAT break song or VIDEO to shore up the party. If it's bad guy singers, I'll break with a female singer - and vice versa. Or if i need to hit the john - less risky to go when there's no singer up there. That said, I have bars where it's pretty much straight 'roke all night and others - rock bars - where cool edgy music breaks are expected. And singers and dancers are not mutually exclusive. That said, I seldom play more than one or two in a row.

[Bigdog]

It's pure karaoke all night for me, no matter how many singers or how well they sing. I am a KJ.

[Bigdog]

I love my KJ but he has a tendency of playing a full song in between each singer and sometimes the breaks can last around 15-20 minutes.

That's freakin' insane!

That's a real good reason to find another place to SING.

I personally love KJs like him. It keeps "me" working steady.