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I have seen several Karaoke shows that were quite popular and cool when in a front room by the bar die a slow death when they were relegated to a back room. I don't think I have ever seen one that did that and had it work out well.

Of course this is from the singer's perspective. What say you all -- is death by back room common?

I have set up outside a few times and don't like it. I'd rather be in the bar. It didn't kill the crowd, but killed my tips. I figure why go to the extra work of moving everything outside if I'm going to loose money.

I think if you have a following they will follow you to the back room, but if you are just starting out in a bar, the back room is a mistake for sure.

The inside bartender begged me never to play outside again because it killed her crowd inside.

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Back room?  Please excuse, what is a back room, any club i've played in is a big wide open bar with a stage on one side & that's where we set up the singers.  Do some bars have a closed off 'back room'?

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Yes, it's quite common to have more than one room -- perhaps a seating or gaming area that is served by waitresses. It may be connected by a doorway and visible to the bar, but it is seperate sonically.

The crowd tends to start out in the area around the bar, and overflow to the back room.

My favorite karaoke show of all time was a two-night Wed/Thur show in a two-room bar. Some of the friends of the owner complained that you couldn't talk in the bar area and got the show moved to the back room. It slowly died -- slowly because it had been running for four years and it had a nice following. But little by little, the crowd died. Early in the night on slower nights, being all alone back in the back gave little chance for the energy you need for an exciting show. The busy nights were still good because the back room was crowded, but the slower nights got deader and deader.

Eventually the show died and the host was fired. Not long after that, the bar closed -- losing their big Wed/Thursday business along with the smoking law change was fatal.

Another show I go to is going through this same process right now. The show was  hopping when it was in the bar area, but now it is getting dead. I can feel the ax being sharpened.

The reason I asked is that the club I belong to has karaoke every Friday night. Last night they had it out back, and both the bar and the room ended up being dead, with a very dead crowd. Some people apparently liked it and I was worried that they would keep it out back.  After I posted this I talked to the guy who runs the show, and it turns out they aren't even considering that after last night -- we are moving back to the bar.

Right,  around here the settings that have Karaoke have LOADS of stuff going on simultaneously in numerous rooms... VERY few bars are what some know as smaller neighborhood bars,  the corner 1500 sq ft Holiday inn type bar/restaurant, or one or two rooms is virtually non-existent at midnight weekdays or weekends anymore if free standing in MY location..  This is why I suppose I don't understand so much regarding Karaoke's popularity as a main-stay..  It's just ANOTHER activity in the bars that have it around here... MOST don't participate.
Envision large converted ice-skating rink or large Bowling alley buildings with 8 or more rooms. In these rooms there are MANY simultaneous different activities (overall building area close to 15,000 square feet) but they have separate areas off've hallways and aren't "a bar" but actually at times 3 or 4 different bars in separate rooms. Literally several hundred people all and all at least, larger clubs might hold over 1000.. Some shooting pool, playing darts (with 75 likely 100+ televisions throughout all the rooms scattered) while one room is more of the jockish yuppie crowd in the next room there's darts, arcade games,  Foosball, shuffle-board, and the service bar . Center room  may have a decent sized dance floor with KJ, but this is usually NOT the most active room,  a few rooms away where there's a Wurlitzer jukebox playing, it's a different atmosphere . On the other side of this type building there're often other free standing bars within a large open area with games.. with yet another arena bar, 8-10 pool tables, outside adjoining deck... and TV's above just about every two bar stools where people can play games with consoles while others watch whatever they want.  I know of NO small venues that have Karaoke weekdays or even survive into the morning hours.. Most close after dinner is served

This is why without us having a concept of what "Bar" and "Karaoke Venue" means,  and other types of demographic info, we are likely talking apples to oranges.. Reason being, to you "Bar" might be small restaurant extended to early AM bar hours because people actually go to them.. Around here those can't afford entertainment but one or two days tops and those only stay open shortly beyound dinner hours, assuming they survived past the 1990's, one pianist might have a two hour gig..  Places that afford more entertainment (and there aren;t many} Have a large capacity and are night clubs..Capacity hundreds to 1000 (yet 1000 is extreme).. When the drinking age was raised,and  DUI laws came about, outside of a college town bars died, and tight crunches killed MANY smaller venues in the 80's and 90's. There's no 5 day a week entertainment around where I live anyplace. Few city bars even survived, but the toughest did.. Three days tops for entertainers in LARGE venues.  Nightclub entertainer can't make a living around where I live anylonger. Just a few hours, snack money... Not even gas money. Places that have more entertainment are concert halls

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Wow, when you were describing that big club scene, I thought you had been to Odessa, Texas or Lubbock. There are places like that here in Texas. Particularly in our area. Grahams Central Station is a huge club with live bands playing different styles of music in different rooms and karaoke in another room. Dance floors, game rooms, pool tables in rooms and TV's everywhere. In our area, you can find as many as 8 to 10 places with karaoke 7 nights a week. Not only that, you can catch live bands everywhere. We are home to the Brand New Opree where I was one of the original entertainers in a huge venue that helped put Larry Gatlin, Tanya Tucker, and a few others in millions of households through purchase of their recordings. There are 3 bluegrass festivals that take place in the area, as well as our local mall keeping entertainers on stage every day of the week.  Karaoke is huge business in this area. The shows are always in the same place and the buisinesses that have he shows seem to do extreemly well. You can find shows that cater to different styles of music. There are places that promote metal karaoke, some hip hop karaoke, pop karaoke, and you can always find country anywhere you go around here. You can even find karaoke for the family at the mall and it is extreemly successful. It is a free show for anyone who wants to sing. A good friend of mine makes her living doing that show and that is her only source of income outside of a few times a year going into the schools to do a show for the students. People love to sing and people love to be entertained.--Mike

Most VFW and Moose type clubs have 2 bar areas and a larger hall for big receptions. The halls have a separate bar with its own bartender. If the bar tender has to service both bar areas and both are crowded the second area is not crowded very long. I have done parties in all but the hall usually  costs $400 to $1000 with a second bar setup and here they have to have security. That leaves little for KJ or DJ They want the main bar facilities and the mngr agrees because of added cleanup and security problems.

I wont setup in a back room. We have actually had the door closed going into the main bar because of noise. They dont work period.

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Mike,  I think this is all about location.  A person that loves Karaoke out around here would be SOL where I live today 2007.  Either that or need to travel at least 45 minutes one way with Cops trailing him home on sparse roads night after night wanting to make a DUI bust just because theres a car on the road.  The bars DESPITE current laws really aren't "Sober friendly" environments here. Perhaps for this very reason we don't see many New Englanders in Karaoke Scene..  I know of Danny and Myself in the 2-3 years I've been here, and Donnie B up in the Mass area.  Few from Maine, NH, VT or RI... Karaoke interest isn't big for the most part up here although in the cities of CT there's some interest I suppose. But more-so college areas.   I live in an older conservative historic backwards area of CT with 1400-1600 dated homes all over and mindsets that seemed to have evolved little since that time. No alcohol serving establishments are allowed within a mile of any school or religious building at anytime.. Zoning in this old farm area shoots down MOST commercial endeavors..  Bars are something of the devil around here. A woman in a bar alone around here get's quite a name for herself.  Yet college areas are different.  You have a more artistic younger thinking sampling of folk

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

I think you must be right. Location must play a huge part of what I see compaired to what you see.  Where you live, people would probably not find much interest in public enterainment such as karaoke and the bar scene. I am not sure they would find any interest in a show like my friend does at the mall where families can go and meet other people, make friends, and have a good time. It is really funny because her show breaks all the rules for what you expect to find for a karaoke show. Most of the time you hear people talk about needing a couple of drinks to find courage to sing. At her show, everyone just has fun. The lights are not turned down low, it is right out in the open where every shopper in the mall can hear and watch you sing. It is incredible to see people walking by and often the will start dancing down the mall, shopping bags and all! It is a family atmosphere, free for anyone who comes in the mall, and the mall pays for it all! What a gig! People go there an make new friends. It is like they find a new family at the shows in the mall. Not just the karaoke shows, but all the country shows that take place in the mall!  I did a show there today, playing from 2 to 6 and I had over 200 people sitting around listening, clapping, dancing, and just having fun! Sold a bunch of my cd's and it was just great! I stayed around for my friends karaoke show tonight and had a blast with her. It was great fun! Many of the people stayed around for Pam's show, just to hear more singing! I am sure an atmosphere like that would not be of interest anywhere else! I guess we are lucky!--Mike

Absolutely not,  the towns try to shut bars down because they find them to be nuisances, and sources of trouble for the area.  Let alone a prospective trying to get licensing in this area to open an alcohol serving business will not stand a chance these days.  Bars are viewed along the same line as "houses of ill repute", Noise pollution etc..  This is a sleepy old White Angle-Saxon protestant old values area. The police park in bar parking lots playing cat and mouse with patrons about to get on the roads too..  The very few hotel bars have adults, the rest are young kids.



And the problem,  a couple drinks, the cops bust you and you lose your license. So to drive 45 minutes and risk this ?  You can't walk to any bars,  there are none close by...

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

If I had the guts I'd move to a small/medium affordable city where a musician can do something with their life, relocation is tough for me. Karaoke doesn't make "backroom" status here.  It'd be cut before they relocated a banquet hall stage and dancefloor which is what happens.. I think things are going back to the one night a week band, and nickle DJ

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Nickle DJ?

I can understand what you mean about the attitude toward drinking and bars in certain communities.  The county I live in is dry. They tried to vote it wet not long ago. We built a huge arena for holding rodeos and live performances etc. The county comissioner that spearheaded the building of the complex tried to get the county to go wet so that Coors and Budwiser would be able to promote some major rodeo's in our town. The people of the community worked together to get people out to vote the proposition down. The county is still dry. People drive 30 miles south to Odessa or 40 miles to Midland (original home of President Bush) to go to bars, clubs, etc. Even though that is the way it went down as far as the sale of alcohol in our county, the town still promotes music in incredible ways. We have a bluegrass festival twice a year and there is constantly calls to perform on stages around town. The neat thing is even the kids are able to come out. It is great! --Mike

Often two rooms are available.. Sometimes, it's a city/county ordinance, as
in, "Liquor in the front, Poker in the rear".. (Say it out loud)  LMAO