Karaoke Forums

Isn't that the whole point Lonnie other manus don't require it. Why don't they? One thing that seems ironic is the only hosts that seem to suffer from the legal process, are the hosts trying to follow the rules. The pirates if they happen to get caught can settle by licensing the GEM series. If they don't get caught like most have not then they end up paying nothing. The legal process will not solve the piracy problem. At best it will merely get rid of SC's unsold inventory. Since there is currently years of unsold inventory this whole business can drag on, as long as SC can afford to file suits.

That's right tim we are not to let these exchanges devolve into name calling. It seems strange to me several hosts have called me names and have never been called to account for it. If I don't cross all my T's and dot all my I's, I'm the one getting warned. I don't close my mind, I take the information I gather and come to a conclusion. It's called thinking. Maybe you don't like the answer I come up with, to me it makes sense. Like I said only time will prove who's right and who's wrong.

Wasn't one of the rules of the forum that we are supposed to refrain from name calling Chris? That we were to discuss things maybe in heated terms but not to make personal attacks.

It's immaterial as to what other manufacturers do or don't do. Just like it's immaterial if one state has a drinking age of 18 or another has it as 21. Do you think a judge is going to listen to "But in my state I can drink at 18". No, he or she will say "In this state it's 21 and you are guilty". They have the right to enforce what they want as long as it is within the law.

Show me the illegality in their lawsuits.

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You can be strange but not a stranger

I don't care why the others don't, I wish they did, but SC does so I complied. Not a big deal IMO. Not suffering one bit from my decision.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

I, for one, am GLAD the others don't care. I certainly would NOT want to waste all kinds of money on audits, and wasting time checking in every time I upped my collection. Don't need the expense of hassle. I would rather put my money to good use, like buying more music and equipment.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

That is fine. For me, I believe it would definitely keep out the wannabes (kj's that get into this thinking it's all fun and games & can sing all the time not having a clue about equipment or rotation or??) and 'kj's for beer' hosts out of the game and leave it to people who really care about karaoke as a viable entertainment.
But it will never happen so no one has to worry bout it, just wishful thinking on my part.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Since you have NEVER debunked any statement I have posted, yet I have caught you in out and out lies, such as your post that I claimed here on the forum that Kurt ( whom I have never named here) visited my show, and several others, I could not only say but prove the same of you....

Why is it that you require insults and distractions from a point? Oh yes, an old debating trick used to divert attention from a weak position.

For instance, I left you an out. All you have to do is claim that everyone that SC sued was guilty of wrongdoing. That would mean that SC had just cause and evidence of wrongdoing for all of their suits, right?

Go ahead and make that claim.....

...or stop lying about "investigations " because I have to tell you - it only makes you look bad and lose credibility.

Better to take responsibility for your actions, and own up to them - after that you might then have the possibility of rebuilding credibility.

You may even win back all of those who eventually took a running dive off of The SC bandwagon.

All of that being said, in general, I have taken a less vocal stance - except this week due to some silly posts - toward SC. Reason : Now just another no juice IP troll. Yup, I'll correct where I see sillies, but they just don't count anymore. Failed in court, failed in "investigational" oversight, costing themselves a fortune, failed in copyright protection technology, failed in credibility, and most importantly, failed to maintain the trust of their customer base. They failed to stay out of the big boys' way. They just failed. In terms of importance, think gnat fart.

Of course, that doesn't mean they won't continue their "settlement " business model as long as there are uneducated KJs, and try to publicize for the scare effect, but in terms of our industry they are air.

Oops, almost forgot. I also made several statements in regard to mismanagement. Feel free to debunk away.....

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

" Disc based and loving it..."

Your way WOULD help to knock out the KJs for beer, but it would also hurt some serious people who are in lower class neighborhoods. There are areas in the country where a KJ will make more JUST because the places they work can afford to pay more. There are other areas that just don't make a lot of money.

My area has been depressed since 2007. Foreclosures are still high, jobs are still low, and NOBODY wants to pay ANYONE. The wages here are terrible, no matter what industry you are in. Going into any of the local bars and saying sorry I won't work here for less than $250 would never work around here. Maybe on Siesta Key, or downtown Sarasota, cause that is where all the money is. It's not here. And having to pay all kinds of extra fees would kill ALL of us in this area, regardless of how we run our shows. There just would be no more karaoke, because the bars don't have the clientele to make that kind of money. Some of you, on here just do NOT understand that where you are is different than where some of us are.

We have nights where you will get a band playing at one place , I'll say The Gashouse Gorillas, (Very popular around here), EVERYONE in town will go see them, and ALL the other bars will be dead for the whole night. It doesn't help that our bars close at 2:00am.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

Nothing illegal about the lawsuits tim, anyone can sue anybody at anytime in this country. Just like the DA can indite a ham sandwich, usually there is meat in the ham sandwich, if the DA is trying to get charges pressed. Is it really immaterial what other manus do? They are companies to, they are created like you point out to make money. Why would they pass up an opportunity to make money if they can? There has to be a reason why only one company is using the legal process method? I feel it is because they still have years of unsold inventory they need to unload. That product has already been paid for and represents the principal asset left of the currently out of production SC label. Remember tim just because something is legal doesn't make it right, or just.

So what are you against Lonman, pirates or just bad karaoke? You make karaoke sound as if it is some big professional entertainment entity. I guess for the multi-riggers it is. For most of the smaller independent hosts I think it is a bit more relaxed. Sometimes I think professional hosts stress too much over what they are doing. I'm not saying get sloppy or have an inferior product. Sometimes though we forget what karaoke is supposed to be about. Going out having a good time with friends and trying to entertain each other with our vocal abilities or lack thereof. I've see some hosts that are legal really not very good at hosting. Other hosts that don't have all the big equipment and have superior hosting skills. I know we all want the complete package, and we should all work on improving our shows continually. We must not forget what karaoke is all about having fun.

Sure it will. You just have to be able to sell it and back it up.

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-Chris

Isn't it though? Karaoke makes a lot of money for a lot of people. Lonnie has been doing this for a long time. He has a name in the area and a brand. He is a professional.



That is what it is about for the SINGERS. For professional hosts it is and always has been about generating a solid source of income. How do we do that? By providing an entertainment service where people can come out for a good time and sing.



If it was just about the fun times, then we would do it for free.

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-Chris

I didn't say do it for free Chris, if you are professional you expect to get paid. I do think that money can't be the primary motivator, there has to be some satisfaction from the job, or why do it? Just for the money? It's a balancing act, if you enjoy what you are doing it shows, and you will earn the bigger pay days. It is pretty easy to spot the hosts that are just interested in the bottom line. It is kind of nice to know I've made my score and if i choose to donate my services to some worthy cause, or to hep out a friend I can.

Wasn't saying anything about $250 a night, around here $150 is on an upper end scale with anything more being gold - but even $150 is nearly impossible to get because of all the low ballers/play for beer kj's that have crap invested (usually pirates mind you) and have no clue how to run it.

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Majority of bad karaoke IS pirates - no not all I realize, but most - the same ones that steal their music, buy crap equipment & have no clue how to run a good show - end result souring clubs and singers alike on karaoke. Make it cost a kj where there are consequences if they don't and you will eliminate pirates in club settings - or at least greatly reduce them. Serious kj's will continue on considering it a cost of doing business.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Of course I get satisfaction from the job otherwise I wouldn't have been doing it for 20 years, but the #1 primary reason is because I get paid decent - bottom line MONEY. If I made any less than I currently do, no way I would've stayed at the place I've been at for 20 years.

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LR there are many who do jobs they don't like to put food on the table and pay the bills. People can start out enjoying a job but then it becomes a rut and continue in order to make a living and that would also include karaoke hosts. For those of us working 5-7 nights a week, 52 weeks a year, (we are definitely professionals) it can become routine just as a heart transplant operation would be for a surgeon with 10-20 years under their belt.

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You can be strange but not a stranger

I worked at Microsoft for 16 years because I loved it. I could have made a lot more money than I did as well had I chosen a different role in the company. But it wasn't about the money for me, it was being excited about I did at the company. Most jobs at Microsoft are 2-3 years tops before you move laterally to another role or up to management/executive status. I stayed in the same role for 12 years which is practically unheard of. I wasn't completely alone though. Several of my peers came into the role at the same time I did. We loved what we did and we decided to stick with it for a long time.

But like Lonnie said, had we not been getting paid pretty well to do what we did, it would have impacted our desire to continue doing it. If you think running karaoke 5,6,7 nights a week is a grind, try being on the road 40 weeks out of the year.

When I was a hobbyist KJ, I did it purely for the enjoyment of it. I lost money in the first year buying gear and music.

When I decided to take it seriously I had to temper my desire with finances. I chose to start a karaoke business because I love it *and* because I could make enough money to support my family and my lifestyle. But I knew that Single Rig Operations weren't going to cut it for me. So I chose to Multi-Rig. That was a financial decision and believe me, it has put a damper on the fun aspect. Not enough to squash my passion for karaoke, but enough to make it more work and less fun. But I know what the financial rewards are so that is why I stick with it.

I wouldn't continue to do it if it weren't fun.
I wouldn't continue to do it if it didn't pay the bills.

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-Chris

We just don't have the population for that. And the people don't have that kind of money. Where I am is a lower middle class area. It's working class folks that have lost all the work. This is part of why I got into hosting. I couldn't find work that would pay me a decent wage, so I created my own job. I make more now a week than I would working for some boss so I am happy. Am I looking to drive a Mercedes?? Hell no. I just want to pay my bills and be happy.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE