Karaoke Forums

You do not have to be a good singer to be a good host - sure it helps, but that is not what a host is being paid to do - they are there to make sure the rotation is fair, run good sound & help people have fun. Sometimes good singing hosts intimidate the not so good singer. If you get a host that doesn't sing as good, you get singers that may come up thinking, hey I can do at LEAST that good if not better. As long as a host is fair, runs good sound I could care less if they can sing or not. I don't go to karaoke to listen to the host sing, I go to karaoke to sing songs, as many as I can.
I had a gal come up to me last night asking to become a host because she just loves to sing - I told her flat out, if that's why you want to host, look elsewhere.

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Ain't that the truth! - I sing LESS now that I KJ then before
....Host should be able to at least "break the ice" with the first song but the a Host that sings TOOO much is ...bad

I honestly think that if the KJ doesn't sing good it can motivate the people who are thinking "I'm no good, i can't do that, you have to sing good to get up there"

Karaoke has never been about being good, it is about having fun... Sure i have more fun if i think i sound good doing a song, but that is just me

I was thinking the same thing last night when I heard to KJs sing that sing "low to average" on a scale. It is encouraging for most people. If they sing too good then people won't go up and sing and will be discouraged. And they will sooner or later leave and the KJ will sooner or later go out of business. The same if he has too many "pro's" among his singers, it is bad for business, since most people do not sing like pro's and you as a KJ make 90% of your money on the non-pros that are there.

some are kjs that just plain suck at singing... my ex-partner's ex-partner (there's a mouthful) was that way. He was a terrific sound man, and knew the karaoke world well back then... but he couldn't carry a tune if his life depended on it.

Having a KJ that can't sing can hurt sometimes during slow times... but during normal times, it's great... just one more person that DOESN'T sing in rotation!

I have been a karaoke host for the same nightclub for about a year. I have been asked to sing and I do sing at times. But my voice is not the best so therefore, I prefer not to sing. Sometimes I will just to get it started and besides, if they hear my voice than they figure anyone can do it :D I work at a Bar that does karaoke 5 nights a week and I have been told over and over again that they like my sound over the other kjs. I always have a great crowd. My favorite part about my job is getting to hear all the great voices and being entertained by them. I work the busiest night of the week and am overloaded with singers usually have to cut off the list around 12:00 midnight, probably should do it sooner. Anyhow, by the time I walk into the place to set up, I usually have about 5 sign up sheets from people already there, because on a Saturday night you better be there early if you want to sing anymore than 3 songs that night.

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Kimbers - "Sing it like you mean it"

I'm with the general consensus here: Sing the first song, every other rotation if it is slow, otherwise I save it for special requests. Like I sometimes say at the beginning of shows, after my soundcheck

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"C'mon people! We can get drunker than this!"

I think the KJ needs to sing at least one song, preferably to start it off, and, as has been said before, not be so good at it that it discourages the other performers. There's a large faction of non-karaoke'rs that think everyone who does it is a goober. The last thing we need to think is that a KJ is one of them.

First song is a sound check. I always do the same song because I know it and can focus on getting the room EQ'd.

I will sing every now and then at the top of the rotation. Yes, I will skip singing depending on the night, but I do try to get a second song in.

Especially if there is a line of downright terrible croakers or the block of "slower than mollassess" songs.

Do I judge a KJ if they don't sing? No. I am more concerned about sound than if the KJ sings. I hate systems that sound like they are thrown in a bowl of water or have a hisssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss.

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A good friend will come and bail you out of jail...but, a true friend will be sitting next to you saying, "Damn...that was fun!"

I want you all to know that after reading the bulletin board here I went out last night to where I work, but wasn't working, was there to party and listen, which I do frequently so I can actually hear the sound from the customer point of view and to practice more singing. Picked "Brass in Pockets", the only CDG they had with that song was Back Stage and I should have known better, you could actually hear the singer in the CDG. So that didn't work either. I can sing, just limited songs, my favorite is (@$%&#!), by Meredith Brooks, but that is not a good show opener and I have to have an attitude to sing that one . I use to sing karaoke alot until I actually listened to a tape of myself. Anyhow, I continue to try, and I know what I can do and cannot. I wish I could sing better. But I do love KJing karaoke, and I have a very good ear for sound so therefore, I will continue to KJ and listen to all the other singers and once in a while sing myself. Thanks Kim

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Kimbers - "Sing it like you mean it"

It really helps when the KJ can sing....

I was working my first gig (woohoo!) in a bar that just opened (read that as DEAD) when a small group of about 6 people came in and ordered drinks. I did what I had done plenty of times that night... told them it was karaoke night at the Husky and told them to turn in slips if they would like to sing...

One of them said "Why don't you show us how to do it?"

If I couldn't sing they probably wouldn't have stayed for 2 hours buying drinks and singing (REAL short rotations!).

Singing is something KJ should be able to do - even if it's only one or two songs. We are a strange breed amongst performers - we are both an entertainer (singer), MC, and technical staff (working the board). Not too many other professions do all this at the same time in one night.

my partner Tig was running his show last night, and his voice was kaput... and it showed BIGTIME... the lack of enthusiasm from the crowd was really interesting to watch.

When I start a show I announce that I'm going to sing the first song just to make sure that everything is adjusted properly, then at the top of the next rotation I announce that it is the top of the rotation and although it's now my turn I'm going to pass so that everyone else gets to sing more. I will occasionally sing when it's my turn, but when I do, I remind the audience that I normally pass on my turn and that this will be an exception.

For the most part singers sing in the order that they come in at and new singers get put in at the end of the list.
However...
At the end of the evening I will make sure that new singers that have been there a while get to sing. I am very up front with the fact that these singers have been there a while and that I'm bringing them in so that everyone that has been there a while gets to sing. Sorry but no new arrivals. I tell new arrivals that they should come in earlier when they try to in a slip. The differance between one and the other is that one turned in a slip when I was accepting slips, and the other has not.

I accept no bribes!
My soul isn't for sale!
If you wanna sing next, you gotta buy a round for the house.

I do know of a lot of KJ's that sing a lot. I personally do the first song each night, to make sure of the volume and to check microphones. After that, I sing in the rotation until I get enough singers, 5 or so. I get to do several duets with other people who request it. I spend a lot of time talking to people to get them up to sing. Some of them only need some encouragement to get up. But they like that about me. If there are 10 singers, and you average about 5 minutes a song, it will take 50 minutes between songs for your singers. Why should I take more time from them? I also do not allow cussing on my microphone. I try to run a profressional show and my regulars seem to enjoy that. I have some really good entertainers on my stage. And some others also. Which makes for a good show.

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I am a retired 22 year Marine. I learned to DJ music in 1989 on Okinawa. When I returned to North Carolina I started my own business and trained DJ's. I had as many as 20 DJ's being trained at one time. I began some Karoake at that time, but not much. The demand just wasn't there. In 1998, I moved to Beaufort, where they make Marines, and Karaoke was a big request. I work on my own now and I enjoy it a lot more.

Well i guess the kj in question certainly isn,t lacking in singers who are there to sing themselves and as they say if aint broke don,t try and fix it.

Almost every karaoke place I go around here, whether it's Auburn, Rocklin, Roseville, or Sacramento, almost every KJ sings in every single rotation no matter how busy it is. I will never ever understand this. It takes away from the time meant for the customers/singers. I know if it was me KJ'g that there is no way I'd do that unless it was super slow. I mean geez if you're dying to sing that much, why don't cha just go to shows and sing your lil heart out?

The first place I ever went, I have thankfully never since, seen a KJ team (2 spouses) so unconcerned about their audience. The wife was definitely a frustrated performer.

I usually will sing at most of my shows, But lately I have been doing a Daquri SHop, and it's mostly kids. I refuse to sing rap, and they don't want to hear anything else. I really hate that, because I am loosing out without the practice.

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I'm Not Dead yet...... But every day Im getting Closer !

Personally the shows that give me the most satisfaction is when I don,t have to sing because from start to end of the show my singers are gagging to get up and sing in which case I just keep firing them on up now thats karaoke not cabaret on my part.

I'm at a show. It just happens to be mine. Would you want to go to a show and not get to sing?

What is it with singers? Are they so stage hungry they can't wait an extra 3-5 minutes for the KJ to have a turn?

As long as I limit myself to one song per rotation, there's no reason I can't sing just like everyone else. This is a party, after all....

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Paid2Party
"I love karaoke. Where else can you get paid to come out and party with your friends?"