Whatever happened to traditonal Karaoke?
Whatever happened to traditonal Karaoke?
I remember when the Host just announced the singer and the song when calling up singers and if he didn't have singers, he sang. These days you got all these distractions from karaoke as Bigdog would put it like Karaoke games, filler music etc. My question is when did we get out of the karaoke entertainment business and into Karaoke distractions?
I'll bet Bigdog will be on very soon and he'll say the same as me, I'd bet!! 
We are simply following a trend of the cheapo KJ's, that can't really carry a tune in a bucket and don't want to put any effort into it either, who turn into DJ's at the drop of a hat and play background music all the time.
My preference is to belt out some tunes, while it's quiet and also to try out some songs that I haven't done before.
By definition, I get this chance while it's fairly quiet and it doesn't really matter if I make a mess of it, or not. Although, obviously, I'd rather be magnificent!
I also have a simple viewpoint to them that come in but just "hover" while screwing up their courage to sing and say "If you want me off the mike, all you have to do is put your name up!"
Usually works!!
Sandy
We are simply following a trend of the cheapo KJ's, that can't really carry a tune in a bucket and don't want to put any effort into it either, who turn into DJ's at the drop of a hat and play background music all the time.
My preference is to belt out some tunes, while it's quiet and also to try out some songs that I haven't done before.
By definition, I get this chance while it's fairly quiet and it doesn't really matter if I make a mess of it, or not. Although, obviously, I'd rather be magnificent!
I also have a simple viewpoint to them that come in but just "hover" while screwing up their courage to sing and say "If you want me off the mike, all you have to do is put your name up!"
Usually works!!
Sandy
Even I have gotten away from singing every song if I have zero singers for fear of dead air as I enter their requests that they give me while I am singing. When I am singing, I will admit to using the screen, I know I should pick songs that I know by heart and don't need the lyrics but that falls into the category of maybe 6 songs. I can sing just about any sng that I use the screen for. While I have a decent voice, I wonder if I scare people away with it by their thinking that they have to be good to sing karaoke, which karaoke is not about. So I fell into the habit of playing music while I had no singers and only singing at the start of a short rotation or in a duet with someone who doesn't have a partner.
The sad fact is, that a lot of potential singers can readily be put off by someone that IS really good.
Some years ago, I used to go to a Karaoke show that had a semi-Pro singer running it and he was Sooooo good that punters just looked on it as a free live show. Hardly anyone would put their name up as they thought they would be rubbish after the guy.
I believe this is one of the main reasons that loads of punters wait 'till the alcohol confidence "kicks in" and then want to sing an album at the end of the night.
I can sing a bit but my main failing is that I have an atrocious memory, so Karaoke was a Godsend for me, as far as lyrics are concerned.
Sandy
Some years ago, I used to go to a Karaoke show that had a semi-Pro singer running it and he was Sooooo good that punters just looked on it as a free live show. Hardly anyone would put their name up as they thought they would be rubbish after the guy.
I believe this is one of the main reasons that loads of punters wait 'till the alcohol confidence "kicks in" and then want to sing an album at the end of the night.
I can sing a bit but my main failing is that I have an atrocious memory, so Karaoke was a Godsend for me, as far as lyrics are concerned.
Sandy
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
Woo hoo hooooo!
Debbie just hit the wall
She never had it all
One Prozac a day
Husband's a CPA
Her dreams went out the door
When she turned 24.
Only been with one man
What happened to her plan?
She was gonna be an actress
She was gonna be a star
She was gonna shake her ass
On the hood of White Snake's car
Her yellow SUV is now the enemy
Looks at her average life
And nothing, has been...
all right since
Bruce Springsteen, Madonna
Way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 19, 19, 1985
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
(1985)
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
She’s seen all the classics
She knows every line
"Breakfast Club", "Pretty In Pink"
Even "St. Elmo's Fire"
She rocked out to Wham!
Not a big Limp Bizkit fan
Thought she'd get a hand
On a member of Duran Duran
Where's the mini-skirt made of snakeskin?
And who's the other guy that's singing in Van Halen?
When did reality become T.V.?
What ever happened to sitcoms, game shows,
(on the radio was)
Springsteen, Madonna
way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 19, 19, 1985
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
She hates time, make it stop
When did Motley Crue become classic rock?
And when did Ozzy become an actor?
Please make this stop, stop, STOP(tick tick tick) and bring back
Springsteen, Madonna
way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 1985
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
Bruce Springsteen, Madonna
Way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV (Woohoo)
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool (1985)
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 19, 19, 1985
Wriiten by Bowling for Soup....
This exactly explains what some KJs are doing to karaoke. Everything but... That's the problem.
I refuse to do anything but nonstop karaoke from the first note to the last. If nobody else is singing, I am, PERIOD. If you don't like my singing you have some options.
1. You can sing.
2. Your friends can sing.
3. You can leave.
Every person in the bar is important to the success of the night. That includes nonsingers. But it is a karaoke night and I'm a KJ. My job is to entertain everyone in attendance and try to get them to stay and want to come back often.
However the nonsingers will never hi-jack or dictate the format of my show. Meaning I'm not changing anything I currently do, such as adding singing contests, money give-aways, games, dance music, name that tune, guitar hero, bingo or kiddie night.
I have been very successfully doing "all karaoke" shows for 17 years. Many of my competition that couldn't achieve that has gone down the tubes. My show will continue to be all about the singers and doing whatever it takes to keep and attract new singers. That happens to be nonstop karaoke.
My goal has always been to promote high quality karaoke. It shows in my equipment and my style. My show is about singers singing on an above average sound system. Which includes quality microphones. KJs that don't feel the singers are important and sound doesn't matter need to do whatever it takes to keep working. I don't have that worry.
MTV sold out. They were to be a full time music video station. Reality show stupid topics have nothing to do with music.
KJ sell outs that want to be all things to all people when they should be concentrating on karaoke are killing karaoke. Chasing singers away to cater to someone that wants to dance kills karaoke. The more you do the faster you kill it.
News Flash.....Karaoke Singers want to sing karaoke. Not play bingo, and listen to dance music. Singing contests kill crowds. If someone isn't singing, the singers get mad. They feel it's wasting valueable singing time. Time they could spend at an actual karaoke show.
I know and hope that my failure competition continues to do everything but karaoke. It keeps me working and popular with real karaoke singers.
KJs that have to do money give-aways and contests and bingo are in a desperartion mode. They are saying LOAD and CLEAR...I'm failing to attract a karaoke crowd. I'm desperate to get anyone in my shows any way I can. I won't be around much longer.
I stopped doing contests when I figured out how damaging it actually is to the night.
Many KJs will say I'm just changing with the times and doing what the crowd wants. It's not about what the crowd wants. It's a karaoke night. What do you think happens at a karaoke night? Karaoke is still a very popular money making business for the bars. Singers still seek out karaoke shows. I deliver karaoke and my singers know that I can be counted on to do that and only that every night. It's part of my reputation. They know they get maximim singing time and they will sound great doing it.
Once in a while someone will ask my to play a dance song. I tell them I do all karaoke and they give me a stupid look. Obviously they can hi-jack other karaoke shows at will. The night will be exactlly they way I want it to be. NOBODY will ever Hi-jack MY show. If it's on karaoke and you're going to sing it then it gets played. If not, Too bad. I don't care what you think or how you feel about it. I'm doing a karaoke show. Take it or leave it. Hi-jackers are not part of my success.
I'm not worried about looking cool. I'm there to do karaoke. It's not about me, it's about the SINGERS, always. They know I treat them fairly. I don't play rotation games because of your song selection or how much you suck.
Ignore the singers and kill your job. Karaoke is your job. When I hear other KJs say karaoke is dying...it's because your killing it. Don't blame anyone but you. The singers haven't left the planet. They are out there looking for a "real karaoke" show. Or they already come to my show because you chased them away.
Woo hoo hooooo!
Debbie just hit the wall
She never had it all
One Prozac a day
Husband's a CPA
Her dreams went out the door
When she turned 24.
Only been with one man
What happened to her plan?
She was gonna be an actress
She was gonna be a star
She was gonna shake her ass
On the hood of White Snake's car
Her yellow SUV is now the enemy
Looks at her average life
And nothing, has been...
all right since
Bruce Springsteen, Madonna
Way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 19, 19, 1985
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
(1985)
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
She’s seen all the classics
She knows every line
"Breakfast Club", "Pretty In Pink"
Even "St. Elmo's Fire"
She rocked out to Wham!
Not a big Limp Bizkit fan
Thought she'd get a hand
On a member of Duran Duran
Where's the mini-skirt made of snakeskin?
And who's the other guy that's singing in Van Halen?
When did reality become T.V.?
What ever happened to sitcoms, game shows,
(on the radio was)
Springsteen, Madonna
way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 19, 19, 1985
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
She hates time, make it stop
When did Motley Crue become classic rock?
And when did Ozzy become an actor?
Please make this stop, stop, STOP(tick tick tick) and bring back
Springsteen, Madonna
way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 1985
Woo Hoo Hooooo!
Bruce Springsteen, Madonna
Way before Nirvana
There was U2 and Blondie
And music still on MTV (Woohoo)
Her two kids in high school
They tell her that she's uncool (1985)
Cuz she's still preoccupied
With 19, 19, 1985
Wriiten by Bowling for Soup....
This exactly explains what some KJs are doing to karaoke. Everything but... That's the problem.
I refuse to do anything but nonstop karaoke from the first note to the last. If nobody else is singing, I am, PERIOD. If you don't like my singing you have some options.
1. You can sing.
2. Your friends can sing.
3. You can leave.
Every person in the bar is important to the success of the night. That includes nonsingers. But it is a karaoke night and I'm a KJ. My job is to entertain everyone in attendance and try to get them to stay and want to come back often.
However the nonsingers will never hi-jack or dictate the format of my show. Meaning I'm not changing anything I currently do, such as adding singing contests, money give-aways, games, dance music, name that tune, guitar hero, bingo or kiddie night.
I have been very successfully doing "all karaoke" shows for 17 years. Many of my competition that couldn't achieve that has gone down the tubes. My show will continue to be all about the singers and doing whatever it takes to keep and attract new singers. That happens to be nonstop karaoke.
My goal has always been to promote high quality karaoke. It shows in my equipment and my style. My show is about singers singing on an above average sound system. Which includes quality microphones. KJs that don't feel the singers are important and sound doesn't matter need to do whatever it takes to keep working. I don't have that worry.
MTV sold out. They were to be a full time music video station. Reality show stupid topics have nothing to do with music.
KJ sell outs that want to be all things to all people when they should be concentrating on karaoke are killing karaoke. Chasing singers away to cater to someone that wants to dance kills karaoke. The more you do the faster you kill it.
News Flash.....Karaoke Singers want to sing karaoke. Not play bingo, and listen to dance music. Singing contests kill crowds. If someone isn't singing, the singers get mad. They feel it's wasting valueable singing time. Time they could spend at an actual karaoke show.
I know and hope that my failure competition continues to do everything but karaoke. It keeps me working and popular with real karaoke singers.
KJs that have to do money give-aways and contests and bingo are in a desperartion mode. They are saying LOAD and CLEAR...I'm failing to attract a karaoke crowd. I'm desperate to get anyone in my shows any way I can. I won't be around much longer.
I stopped doing contests when I figured out how damaging it actually is to the night.
Many KJs will say I'm just changing with the times and doing what the crowd wants. It's not about what the crowd wants. It's a karaoke night. What do you think happens at a karaoke night? Karaoke is still a very popular money making business for the bars. Singers still seek out karaoke shows. I deliver karaoke and my singers know that I can be counted on to do that and only that every night. It's part of my reputation. They know they get maximim singing time and they will sound great doing it.
Once in a while someone will ask my to play a dance song. I tell them I do all karaoke and they give me a stupid look. Obviously they can hi-jack other karaoke shows at will. The night will be exactlly they way I want it to be. NOBODY will ever Hi-jack MY show. If it's on karaoke and you're going to sing it then it gets played. If not, Too bad. I don't care what you think or how you feel about it. I'm doing a karaoke show. Take it or leave it. Hi-jackers are not part of my success.
I'm not worried about looking cool. I'm there to do karaoke. It's not about me, it's about the SINGERS, always. They know I treat them fairly. I don't play rotation games because of your song selection or how much you suck.
Ignore the singers and kill your job. Karaoke is your job. When I hear other KJs say karaoke is dying...it's because your killing it. Don't blame anyone but you. The singers haven't left the planet. They are out there looking for a "real karaoke" show. Or they already come to my show because you chased them away.
I do sing well and I can do about 600 songs. I will intentionally screw up the words in a song and laugh about it so they know they don't have to worry about being perfect. Nobody wants to be embarrassed. I'll embarrass myself to make the point. I even say you have to read the words it's karaoke, during my song. I throw myself under the bus to make them comfortable.mnementh wrote:The sad fact is, that a lot of potential singers can readily be put off by someone that IS really good.
Some years ago, I used to go to a Karaoke show that had a semi-Pro singer running it and he was Sooooo good that punters just looked on it as a free live show. Hardly anyone would put their name up as they thought they would be rubbish after the guy.
I believe this is one of the main reasons that loads of punters wait 'till the alcohol confidence "kicks in" and then want to sing an album at the end of the night.
I can sing a bit but my main failing is that I have an atrocious memory, so Karaoke was a Godsend for me, as far as lyrics are concerned.
Sandy
Here is the nub of the problem!
I've just got home from a Pub that used to do Karaoke on a Friday night with a KJ that is, in my humble opinion, not the Worlds best but he did a steady nights work, with the odd bit of fill in muzak.
The pub was reasonably full every Friday night and the takings at the bar must have been reasonable.
However, a few weeks back, for whatever reason the KJ got punted and Friday nights now are like the Marie Celeste. Deserted!
The pub has loost thousands in over the bar takings, as far as I can see and are trying to produce a Karaoke on minimum budget, with an old system that they still have.
Almost certainly, this will be runm by one of the barmen, that singa a bit, probably after he has finished work and is ready for a few beers and it will be a disaster.
Sadly, in this particular area, one KJ is ruling the roost and to be honest, he's pretty mediocre but his price is right and REAL Kj's don't stand a chance.
Sad, very sad!!!
Sandy
I've just got home from a Pub that used to do Karaoke on a Friday night with a KJ that is, in my humble opinion, not the Worlds best but he did a steady nights work, with the odd bit of fill in muzak.
The pub was reasonably full every Friday night and the takings at the bar must have been reasonable.
However, a few weeks back, for whatever reason the KJ got punted and Friday nights now are like the Marie Celeste. Deserted!
The pub has loost thousands in over the bar takings, as far as I can see and are trying to produce a Karaoke on minimum budget, with an old system that they still have.
Almost certainly, this will be runm by one of the barmen, that singa a bit, probably after he has finished work and is ready for a few beers and it will be a disaster.
Sadly, in this particular area, one KJ is ruling the roost and to be honest, he's pretty mediocre but his price is right and REAL Kj's don't stand a chance.
Sad, very sad!!!
Sandy
Stupid bar owners and medium to low quality KJs are the norm. Bar owners that do not understand the value of a good quality KJ and assume we are all the same are the problem. Everyone wants to save money. At a certain point the money saving turns in to money losing. A poor quality KJ is cheap but it's because they can't deliver the goods. Bar owners that want to make big money on a karaoke night need to hire good quality KJs. The little bit more it costs will come back in bigger profits.mnementh wrote:Here is the nub of the problem!
I've just got home from a Pub that used to do Karaoke on a Friday night with a KJ that is, in my humble opinion, not the Worlds best but he did a steady nights work, with the odd bit of fill in muzak.
The pub was reasonably full every Friday night and the takings at the bar must have been reasonable.
However, a few weeks back, for whatever reason the KJ got punted and Friday nights now are like the Marie Celeste. Deserted!
The pub has loost thousands in over the bar takings, as far as I can see and are trying to produce a Karaoke on minimum budget, with an old system that they still have.
Almost certainly, this will be runm by one of the barmen, that singa a bit, probably after he has finished work and is ready for a few beers and it will be a disaster.
Sadly, in this particular area, one KJ is ruling the roost and to be honest, he's pretty mediocre but his price is right and REAL Kj's don't stand a chance.
Sad, very sad!!!
Sandy
You get what you pay for.
It takes money to make money.
What you have described has happened over and over. Most of the time there is a big price to pay for this kind of stupidity. The bar owner can't manage his business deserves to go under.
Maybe he can get the bartender to do his taxes and payroll too, since he's already there anyway.
Being a good KJ is not an accident. Many things factor into being good. Most KJs can't and don't or won't do what it really takes.
Bar owners think just because they are open they should be a success. People will just want to be there for crap entertainment. What do they know?
It will all happen again tomorrow. And the next day and the next....
I have argued this topic for several years.
Mostly to KJs that DJ for half the night while they have singers waiting in line.
Their excuse is they are giving the people what they want. No karaoke singer have ever asked me when I'm going to start the dance music so they can't sing.
My show is a high energy show as far as the music being almost continous. (Except for the lag time of some companies from the time the title comes up until the music for that song actually starts.) It's not high energy as far as the songs being sung. Truse karaoke shows will never be "High Energy" as far as the beats of the muic being played. Meaning any slow song will not be played.
Any karaoke show that caters to people that want to dance should not be billed as a karaoke show. It's a LIE. You are guilty of misrepresentation.
I have done and continue to do karaoke on weekends and during the week. I have never had a problem having successful nights any day of the week. The shows are always billed as karaoke. Nothing else happens during the night but singing. That means every song played is sung by someone.
KJs that want to use the excuse of "adapting to the crowd" are just trying to justify their lack of ability to run a totally karaoke show. Maybe because they are afraid of looking uncool. This could be because they don't like certain types of music ruining the "High Energy" mood of the night. Love songs aren't cool. Slow songs aren't cool. Karaoke isn't about cool, it's about SINGING.
Nobody has ever said they love my karaoke show because of the high energy. They love the professionalism, the sound and the fact that it is all karaoke without all the drama. I don't get constantly bombarded by people asking for or complaining about the lack of dance music (not karaoke music) during the show.
I had a request to play a dance song the other night. I simply tell them I don't have any "regular" music on my computer. Or that I do an all karaoke show. There was not fit of rage. No "let's get out of here." They don't leave. They stay and continue having fun. And yes they dance to the karaoke songs. It's the same music they would dance to if it wasn't being sung live. Slow or fast. I'm not worried about them thinking I'm not cool. I am delivering exactly what I was hired to do. Exactly what is advertised.
My show caters to singers. I'm sure there are shows that don't. At what point does the show stop being a karaoke show? Just because you let a few people sing in between the high energy dance music, does that mean you can still claim to be a karaoke show or a KJ? Just owning some karaoke music doesn't mean you are a KJ. You are part of the problem. You are the reason for the death of karaoke as it was meant to be. Continuing down that path will only add gasoline to the funeral pyre for karaoke.
When KJs complain about not being able to get hired to do karaoke anymore....yeah not what you call karaoke. Not a night of dance music karaoke with a few karaoke songs sung. Not when you let the people that want to dance dictate how YOUR show will be. You can't get hired because you stopped being a KJ and turned into a DJ. I have no sympathy for your self inflicted plight. You created your own monster by catering to dancers instead of singers at YOUR karaoke show. You took the lazy way out and ruined karaoke. I'll just play some dance music and I don't have to work as hard. Just let the disco disc play. Hey I'm cool. No love song's gonna screw up my high energy dance show. Yes you are right. The singers went down the road. Ain't that cool. A cool KJ without singers.
My singers makes me. Always will. Not dancers.
Unfortunately you let people that won't pay your bills when you can't find work dictate your business success or lack of it. That was a poor business decision and it cost you. KJs that cater to singers can and will still find work as KJs. My arms are tired.
Mostly to KJs that DJ for half the night while they have singers waiting in line.
Their excuse is they are giving the people what they want. No karaoke singer have ever asked me when I'm going to start the dance music so they can't sing.
My show is a high energy show as far as the music being almost continous. (Except for the lag time of some companies from the time the title comes up until the music for that song actually starts.) It's not high energy as far as the songs being sung. Truse karaoke shows will never be "High Energy" as far as the beats of the muic being played. Meaning any slow song will not be played.
Any karaoke show that caters to people that want to dance should not be billed as a karaoke show. It's a LIE. You are guilty of misrepresentation.
I have done and continue to do karaoke on weekends and during the week. I have never had a problem having successful nights any day of the week. The shows are always billed as karaoke. Nothing else happens during the night but singing. That means every song played is sung by someone.
KJs that want to use the excuse of "adapting to the crowd" are just trying to justify their lack of ability to run a totally karaoke show. Maybe because they are afraid of looking uncool. This could be because they don't like certain types of music ruining the "High Energy" mood of the night. Love songs aren't cool. Slow songs aren't cool. Karaoke isn't about cool, it's about SINGING.
Nobody has ever said they love my karaoke show because of the high energy. They love the professionalism, the sound and the fact that it is all karaoke without all the drama. I don't get constantly bombarded by people asking for or complaining about the lack of dance music (not karaoke music) during the show.
I had a request to play a dance song the other night. I simply tell them I don't have any "regular" music on my computer. Or that I do an all karaoke show. There was not fit of rage. No "let's get out of here." They don't leave. They stay and continue having fun. And yes they dance to the karaoke songs. It's the same music they would dance to if it wasn't being sung live. Slow or fast. I'm not worried about them thinking I'm not cool. I am delivering exactly what I was hired to do. Exactly what is advertised.
My show caters to singers. I'm sure there are shows that don't. At what point does the show stop being a karaoke show? Just because you let a few people sing in between the high energy dance music, does that mean you can still claim to be a karaoke show or a KJ? Just owning some karaoke music doesn't mean you are a KJ. You are part of the problem. You are the reason for the death of karaoke as it was meant to be. Continuing down that path will only add gasoline to the funeral pyre for karaoke.
When KJs complain about not being able to get hired to do karaoke anymore....yeah not what you call karaoke. Not a night of dance music karaoke with a few karaoke songs sung. Not when you let the people that want to dance dictate how YOUR show will be. You can't get hired because you stopped being a KJ and turned into a DJ. I have no sympathy for your self inflicted plight. You created your own monster by catering to dancers instead of singers at YOUR karaoke show. You took the lazy way out and ruined karaoke. I'll just play some dance music and I don't have to work as hard. Just let the disco disc play. Hey I'm cool. No love song's gonna screw up my high energy dance show. Yes you are right. The singers went down the road. Ain't that cool. A cool KJ without singers.
My singers makes me. Always will. Not dancers.
Unfortunately you let people that won't pay your bills when you can't find work dictate your business success or lack of it. That was a poor business decision and it cost you. KJs that cater to singers can and will still find work as KJs.
My arms are tired.
Bigdog, I could not agree with you more. I am trying to get back to traditional karaoke at my new bar gig. But I sang for the first hour and it wasn't pretty. Normally I do a good job singing but something was off last Friday night with my voice. The only song that sounded halfway decent was Bob Dylan's Like A Rolling Stone. Normally I can rattle off Journey but it wasn't to be Friday Night. It's sad when the only stuff you can sing for the night is Bob Dylan when you want to sing Journey. Hopefully tomorrow night I'll have my voice back. It's also sad when your program has left you behind. I can't upgrade to the new version because my display doesn't have enough video ram. If I went with the newest version my lyrics would lag and that's not cool.
I'm dealing with another sinus thingy. That's why I have a bunch of "talking" songs. Not much singing required.DanG2006 wrote:Bigdog, I could not agree with you more. I am trying to get back to traditional karaoke at my new bar gig. But I sang for the first hour and it wasn't pretty. Normally I do a good job singing but something was off last Friday night with my voice. The only song that sounded halfway decent was Bob Dylan's Like A Rolling Stone. Normally I can rattle off Journey but it wasn't to be Friday Night. It's sad when the only stuff you can sing for the night is Bob Dylan when you want to sing Journey. Hopefully tomorrow night I'll have my voice back. It's also sad when your program has left you behind. I can't upgrade to the new version because my display doesn't have enough video ram. If I went with the newest version my lyrics would lag and that's not cool.
The other night I had some people tell me they turned in slips so they wouldn't have to listen to me anymore.
I'd like to bring up a couple of points.
My show starts timely every week. If there are no singers, I sing. It's a good time to practice for me. However, the KJ at the bar I go to will not start his show until he has at least three or four singers. His show is supposed to start at 9; there have been nights it doesn't start until 10 or later. Most nights it's around 9:30. He plays music until he has singers, then it's strictly karaoke until the night ends. I really wish he would start timely.
Secondly ... if a person comes up and asks for a specific tune to be played, why not find a regular who can do it, or at least attempt it? I would even consider putting them in as a request rather than their regular slot in the rotation, but would have to think about that. Or maybe have it be a "group" song. That way, the person who wants some dance music is happy and it's still a strictly karaoke show.
My show starts timely every week. If there are no singers, I sing. It's a good time to practice for me. However, the KJ at the bar I go to will not start his show until he has at least three or four singers. His show is supposed to start at 9; there have been nights it doesn't start until 10 or later. Most nights it's around 9:30. He plays music until he has singers, then it's strictly karaoke until the night ends. I really wish he would start timely.
Secondly ... if a person comes up and asks for a specific tune to be played, why not find a regular who can do it, or at least attempt it? I would even consider putting them in as a request rather than their regular slot in the rotation, but would have to think about that. Or maybe have it be a "group" song. That way, the person who wants some dance music is happy and it's still a strictly karaoke show.
Sabrina the Cat
The sing-a-long thing sounds good until they figure that out. Then they will dictate how your show is run. We can't dance so we'll just request songs to sing-a-long with, that just happen to be dance songs.
Thereby cheating the actual singers out of some singing time.
Cater to anyone that isn't a singer and you wll lose control of your show. Is it a karaoke show or a sing-a-long request show?
Everything has an effect. It's usually not a good one.
I cater to singers at karaoke. Singers only. You want to dance to it then you have to sing it or it doesn't get played.
It's easy to fall into the "catering" trap. Well I'll just play this for Bob this one time. Then it becomes 2 then 3 then 4....next thing you know they are running your show. Singers start getting mad and you are on your way to becoming an unemployed DJ/KJ.
Stay pure and stay working. Or beccome a DJ and don't screw up karaoke.
Thereby cheating the actual singers out of some singing time.
Cater to anyone that isn't a singer and you wll lose control of your show. Is it a karaoke show or a sing-a-long request show?
Everything has an effect. It's usually not a good one.
I cater to singers at karaoke. Singers only. You want to dance to it then you have to sing it or it doesn't get played.
It's easy to fall into the "catering" trap. Well I'll just play this for Bob this one time. Then it becomes 2 then 3 then 4....next thing you know they are running your show. Singers start getting mad and you are on your way to becoming an unemployed DJ/KJ.
Stay pure and stay working. Or beccome a DJ and don't screw up karaoke.
great attitude about your singers, 719. Every person who comes in to sing pays for their drinks which translates to paying you, provided they aren't drinking water. To become a KJ is to give up your singing time because IT's ABOUT YOUR SINGERS NOT YOU. You're getting paid to get others up to sing, not to sing yourself. If you got into karaoke so that you can sing more then you probably aren't going to last as a KJ. I'd rather tick off a dancer than tick off a singer because that is who I am there for. Any filler music I might play is just that- filler music. I'm not being paid to DJ otherwise I would charge more. I hate DJing to be honest. I have to decide what plays. At least with Karaoke all I have to do is enter the requests of my singers and get them up in the order I received the request.
