Karaoke Forums

Ok, here is the deal.

Within the last couple of months I added a new show (actually Wednesday and Saturday night) to my schedule. I have hired and am in the process of training a host that is working the 2 added nights. So far life is great in my karaoke world. Partly to thanks is the ongoing efforts of the manus and partly due to the fact that my Karaoke hosting company has come recommended to the venue (I have never once set foot in the venue to sell, promote or card drop). In fact I had never even met the owner prior to him contacting me to discuss the possibility of supplying a host replacing the existing host (the host was named in a ongoing piracy suit and also exposed venue to liability). I even explained to the owner that I could/would not supply karaoke services until the other host was terminated (he had to do that to protect his business and not just to bring me in). Hence, the other host was given walking papers and the venue went dark for several weeks on karaoke nights until I was ready to put someone in place and breath new life into a stale show. Now the place is full and the regular singers are even happier now (their testimonials) because a larger and more current library (he had nothing newer than 2010) and yes a bunch of SC product the old host claimed he could not get. Now one of my GEMS sets is going to give me an additional return on investment.

Why am I telling all this?????

The venue owner knows who I am and how I run my company and ................ wait for it...............

because my business was operating fully in open and that I was listed on the SC website as having a legal library. Also I demonstrated that I also had an extensive library of other brands that I was purchasing through the proper legal channels (in other words I was playing it by the book and was not going to expose him to any legal action by SC/DT/CB(akaPRLLC).

My point is for all those that have claimed that the audit process, vetting process, certified or whatever one chooses to call it, it's helping my business model. The suits that have happened in my market have also inspired this venue owner to take the high road and hire only a certified hosting company. Oh yea, my skills and that of my host are also a huge part of the hiring process too!

You might not think the suits or certifications have any weight where you are but, in my market is does count for some of the hiring consideration. Just thought I'd share this info with you.

Have a great night everyone.

Side note: another venue has contacted me via face book within the last week and their first question is "is your library legal?" hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Now my problem is not having a host to cover the event (I guess that is a good problem to have)

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

Speaking for myself, I never said that an association with SC as you have described couldn't be helpful in some regions, such as western FL., the Carolinas, Tenn., and parts of VA.. It's just that IN MY WORK AREA any association with SC of any sort is an invitation to leave- immediately. Therefore, it would be no help to me.

Again, it's a regional thing. Example: While it may help on the Gulf Coast, the northeastern part of Fl. Is slowly becoming like my region, either starting to phase out SC being played, or fading karaoke completely.

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

In the good old Sunshine State aka California it really isn't an issue no one really cares. Especially after SC's botched attempt here spearheaded by APS.

I am in one SC's bull's-eye zones that has been targeted more than once, and I don't think SC has had any affect on anyone's attitude here. I must admit that I am a casual KJ in that I do it more for fun than for income, but I get around town quite a bit and I don't get a feeling that buzz words such as "certified" or "legal library" have any added value here. I have never had anyone ask me if my library was legal. The place that I host at has recently changed hands again, and I brought in all of my cd's (~6500) to show that I owned all my music, and the new owner could have cared less.

I would like to think that all my efforts would have some value, but the only effect that I have seen is that my check book has less money in it from buying my music. The pirates are just as busy as I am, and the pay is about the same regardless of how the music was acquired.

The venue owners are not always as properly informed as they think they are (or just don't care or are too lazy or both). Go back and ask him if he is paying his bmi, sesac and ascap fees (most likely not). Most think either that it's a scam or have never heard of them (happens in my area all the time). That's the nature of the industry we are in.

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

I met several people back at Mobile Beat (in Feb) from the west coast "Sunshine State" that really did care and were seen talking and smiling with Kurt. I never saw "no one", they must have stayed home under their rock.

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

Hi Joe,
I think the real problem is the host (with great skills or marginal skills) looking to pick up additional work are terrible sales people. I never bring up the "certified" or "legal" issue unless it is brought by the venue first. That is because they (the venue) are usually wanting to make a change or increase revenue or some other thing besides a legal issue. Owners never want to hear they might be doing something wrong (that can be taken as an insult by them). I have yet, even after several rounds of suits in my area by SC to not play that brand either. I guess it's all regional.

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

There is a misconception here I think that owners make the decision about entertainment in the venue. Of the 60 venues where we do DJ Trivia and DJ Bingo, the majority of them have a manager or general manager that makes that decision. Some places we are in I've never even met the owner because they are either an absent owner or a hands off kind of owner regarding day to day operation.

I have several examples of managers that I directly questioned about the situation when Sound Choice filed against KJs in Raleigh. I even brought a copy of the documents and gave it to one guy. Still continues to employ the KJ to this day because he told them it was a "mistake" that he was listed. He still runs shows 6 nights a week and the litigation is not resolved yet after nearly three years because he and another KJ have their own lawyers and have managed to string SC out for that length of time.

One of these two guys ran multiple shows on the same night using other KJs and both are still in business doing shows almost every night. How can other pirates be expected to be afraid to do their thing given these circumstances? Point is, many times someone other than the owner is booking the entertainment and doesn't have a vested interest in the results. All they know is that the KJ is bringing in folks who are spending money and that is the bottom line.

Can't get a decent tan under a rock rumbolt. I guess if you attend an event that's sole purpose is to bring together hosts of like mind, you will have an inaccurate sample group of hosts compared to the general population of hosts.

Not everyone that attended was of "like" mind. Any event like that will have all sides and opinions but not a scientific poll one way or the other. I was just saying that Cali was represented and did not have a problem with SC or the actions so to assume the masses were for or against a specific action was a bogus assumption. Like you I know only a small percentage of the total number of working KJs in the lower 48. Since you are a non working host and the person I was speaking of was a working host and you both are in Cali, then at least 100% of the host I know in Cali are for the actions so I have debunked your claim of "no one"

No back to the OP

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

I think some have missed my point,

I never claimed that the SC manus actions were the primary reason I was able to add new work but it did play in to the entire equation of my sales process to gain the business. Go back and reread my OP (slowly) Also, the fact that the owner contacted me was not so relevant (replace the owner with operating manager or whatever title they have that allows them to make decisions) it is the fact the venue contact was able to recognize what product I could offer then deliver. They saw value in all the aspects and for them the legal aspect did carry weight in their decision and the brand SC was not tainted goods. That was the point!

It is clear even before now that some don't like anything about SC and that is their choice so let it be. If you choose to beat up SC then create you own thread just about that and leave it out of this thread. SC has never harmed me or my business and they have been and continue to be active in my market and the only ones moaning about it are here and not my market.

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

I was once asked to not come back to a venue when they found out I used SC but that was because they were sued and lost (settled and wrote a check to Kurt) and angry they got caught. That venue has since been forced to close by the local ABC board for violations and unpaid alcohol taxes and also income tax issues (unpaid payroll) then being cut off buy the food suppliers because of owing them money too. Perhaps, the hated of SC issues were indicative of other less than honest actions by the venue operators in other areas and even yours. You gotta wonder where they are getting their info!?!

I have on the other hand had venues ask about SC that have never had issue with them and are receptive to the fact that I have the product. Dunno what to tell you??????

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

@Rumbolt, Your first post has SC pasted all over with words such as "certified", "SC website", "legal library", legal action by SC/DT/CB ". What would you expect from your use of such terms? I have a very large "legal SC library", but that has not gotten me 1 single gig. What has gotten me ALL of my gigs is being a great host with a very large loyal following.

Don't bring SC into the topic and then blast us for having a different viewpoint than you. That is what forums are suppose to do. I am glad that you are having great success with your business and that you feel being legal is part of that. I too am legal, but I do because it is the right thing to do.

Nothing to tell. To my knowledge none of the venues in my area have been named, though many KJ's were. However all were named in a suit that was later dropped completely. Like I said, just regional. Just a matter of venues not willing to bother with extra wave-making.

Being OMD probably hasn't hurt me any either...

That being said, I completely agree that both salesmanship and quality hosting skills are what it takes. A long list of multi-year shows for references doesn't hurt either...

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

I can tell you that in my market area NOBODY cares about SC or their actions. Nobody but me is even careful. Now that I have expanded to other areas, I have seen people with loaded hard drives. They don't care. They understand why I won't buy anything more than I have, from SC. They don't understand why I still run around with a cdg player. They think I am silly for playing ONLY my SC on a player while everything else is computerized. I give them my reasons and they laugh at me. Oh well.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

I was using quotations around those words since some here reject them. Whatever phrase I choose to use was representitive of just part of the reason for my ongoing success. I was using the fact to what SC was doing as a factor into how my business was moving forward. I was not opening up the discussion for those that choose to not use their product or to question SC actions to rehash their feelings. I just wanted to show that their actions are working in my favor, that is all.

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

Now not knowing what you consider the size of your market is the mystery that only you can know. I can tell you this, I do know people in the west coast market from Tampa down to Naples that do really do care. The people that you might "run" with are they the "nobody" you a talking about?

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No venue to big or too small. From your den to the local club or event, we have the music most requested. Great sounding system!

You make it sound like EVERYONE out in Cali knows about it (in order to care/not care).



There... I fixed it for you (written in RED)... I know how much you truly love it when I go and "reword hosts posts" (or, in your case, retired host's posts).

See you have it wrong. My "area" is Venice, Englewood, North Port, and Port Charlotte. SC has NEVER gone there. They have gone to Tampa, Orlando, City of Sarasota, Cape Coral, Fort Meyers, and Naples. They have never gone through the 60 miles between City of Sarasota and Cape Coral. WHY, you may ask?? There is no money there. The KJ services are all little one man operations, playing at mom and pop bars. There are no big clubs in the area. As a matter of fact, south of Punta Gorda there are about 30 miles of NOTHING until you get to Cape Coral. Notice, that SC has come through, but only gone through the CITIES, not the little towns. They aren't stupid. They know there is nothing to be gained here. KJs here won't buy their Gems, and they don't have the money to pay big settlements.

As far as I am concerned, if SC ever came to my show they would have nothing to see, since the 38 SC discs I have I play in my JVC player. PR could have a wonderful night hanging out at my show, but they, too wouldn't find anything interesting. And Stellar isn't interested anymore, and I only have two of their discs, anyway.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

I think I know a few more hosts out here than you or rumbolt do cue. How many certified hosts are in California? The last count I recall for Texas was one certified host in all of the Lone Star state. In California there were less than 5. There are more than a 1,000 hosts in Southern California alone. You don't need to fix anything I write, it is what it is. You act like being a retired host is a crime. If it helps once in a while I still do a show for a worthy cause, so I'm semi-retired if that helps, like it really matters. Total number of shows I have done probably are at least 10 times more than you have.