Duets

[RockinBruce]

I wasn't able to find anything on the subject of duets using search...at least as it relates to the rotation...so I am wondering how you all handle duets in your rotations? The shows that I have worked will usually charge the first singer listed on the request slip with their rotation turn, but I have been to shows where duets will count as one turn thru the rotation for both singers. Any thoughts on the subject? Also, there are a few really exceptional singers at the venue that I usually go to that are frequently asked to sing harmony...in your minds would that count as a duet as well?

[DanG2006]

If I don't have a lot of singers I will allow someone who sings a duet to sing a solo song provided they weren't the first name on the ticket. Once I get busy - usually later in the evening, I count it as both of their turns.

[Bigdog]

In my rotation someone (one person) gets charged with the song. I don't care if 25 people sing with them. It's their song. They waited their turn. If they choose to have someone sing with them, so what. I'm not playing GOD, I'm playing music.

As you say, there are some people that require some help to get up there and sing. The idea is to attract new singers. So why would you want to discourage anyone from helping someone new, if they know they will be penalized for doing it. It doesn't make sense and it is not helping your business to build.

If everyone that sings on a particular song (duet) gets charged with it, nobody would ever sing duets and you wasted a whole lot of money buying them. Take them out of you book and don't ever buy another duet.

Nothing sounds better at karaoke than two people harmonizing on a great song.

[letitrip]

For me it depends on the situation. If it's two singers, I'll usually count it as the entry for both singers in that rotation. However, sometimes if it's a case where it's a new singer and someone who's been up a bunch (where i know that the new singer asked a regular singer to sing with them because they were too scared to go it alone) I'll "charge" it against the new singer only. For groups, I generally count it for everyone in the group however again subject to possibly letting a regular who just got "roped-in" still get up and do their own in the same rotation.

One thing that helps me is that I usually know my crowds pretty well. I know who's there together and I usually try to setup the rotation to have them sing back to back. That way if they put in a duet, it's easy to combine their turns for that rotation.

[cowboydarryl]

Also it depends on the volume of people at your shows. I have some where I can play 2 songs each and others only 1. As a rule of thumb I count each singer as 1 song each. example: with a 2 song rotation, dan sings solo,ralph joins dan for duet,ralph sings solo. each got to sing 2 songs. with a 1 song rotation if dan and ralph sing a duet, I count that as 1 song each for both in the rotation. just let your singers know how you run your rotation and most will be ok. one extra note like Tony said with the group songs they count as 1 and you will get the guy who thinks he can join in with every song with every one in the group on non duet songs (just to help out) but people will start to ask why is joe up there 5 times and me only once. If I get slips with joes name on evey other slip from the group I explain the rotation to them and you can usualy work it out. and I only keep out one mic. and hand out more as needed to keep better control on who sings. I learned that if you have more than 1 out there you get the guy that thinks its open mic. night and grabs a mic. and starts singing along with out the singers permision.

[wiseguy]

I made this promise to my singers right from the start... "you will NEVER see another person sing twice before your next turn". Duets and multiple singers are ALWAYS charged to all the singers involved. I have not broken this promise once in 16 years.

[Bigdog]

If a group of paying customers comes in and they all sit at the same table, it's easy to have 3-4-5 different singers there. I have times where they all may join in on a song. I only use 3 microphones so only 3 can be held.

Collectively they are all buying drinks. If Joe puts in his own stack of song requests, and Bob has his own but he likes to sing with others>>>>Joe gets credit for the songs he put in. Bob gets the credit for songs he puts in. If Dale has some songs and Mary Jo has some that get sung with others, they (Dale & Mary Jo) still get charged with their song. And I only ever announce one name in those situations. And I split the requests up, they all won't sing their songs back to back. They may sing this song and the next one is all the way on the other side of the bar. Playing them back to back gets complaints about playing favorites. Which I am not doing. They will only sing one song they get charged with in each rotation. Reqardless of how many are actually singing with them. I refuse to play God and tell people that they can not sing with someone else or come under the penalty of law.

I treat them as individual loyal paying singing customers just like everyone else in the room. There could be 10 people altogether at their table. Just because they are sitting together doesn't mean they should be penalized because of it.

If they each sat a separate tables, what would be the difference? Same number of individual singers to deal with. You wouldn't tell them they can't sing with someone from across the room.

[Marlena]

If I have a table of 5 people named A B C D & E, and they all put up song slips at the same time, my rotation will look something like this.

Bob
Mark
A
Tom
Jim
B
Sue
Joe
C
Ned
Ted
D
Fred
Sam
E

If A Puts up a song with B, and B puts up a song with C and C puts up a song with D and D puts up a song with E. Then the round remains the same because the first singer on the song slip is "charged" with the song.

Now that said, at 1:45 I have room for 19 songs. I put all my songs in to my program and if I have too many to play then I will start charging both for songs.

Some people know how to work the system and others don't. I was one that learned it early on before I started Hosting and I worked it. I could get 4 or 5 people to put their names first on a song slip and mine last on the slip and get to sing that many times in a round with someone else.

I was very young and didn't make the rules. Hate the game! saying that though I don't allow anyone up more than twice to help someone or sing a duet and only once by themselves. For more they have to wait til the next round. where they can do 3 again in total. everyone at my show has to put in their own song slips and USSUALLY these duets or sing alongs get bumped because the person first on the paper doesn't really want to do them anyway.

[DanG2006]

If I don't have a lot of singers I will allow someone who sings a duet to sing a solo song provided they weren't the first name on the ticket. Once I get busy - usually later in the evening, I count it as both of their turns.

Most of the duets are singers wanting me to sing with them.

[Bigdog]

Most singers love the chance to sing with a really good singer. And it may just keep them coming back. You can not penalize the good singer for being popular. That isn't fair. And if it keeps more people coming back, all the better.

They waited all night long and spent their money for a chance to sing. I'm not telling anyone who they can or can not sing with or penalizing anyone for it. If it looks like I'm playing favorites too bad. It just LOOKS like it. I am not or will not play favorites. Each singer sings once per rotation and they are charged with that song even if the entire bar helps them, at their request..

And if you continue to accuse me of playing favorites, you may be singing on a crap system down the road.