Karaoke Forums

Ok so my recent rant post has made me really curious.

Would anyone here go to a karaoke show where the host frequently:
1. skips people in the rotation cause he's lost track of where he is in the rotation
2. Frequently has dead air due to the fact that he's busy chatting with someone, while the singer just sits there waiting for their song to be cued
3. Ocassionally let's a person sing twice in the rotation *and no I'm not talking about duets, I'm talking about singing two songs by themselves*
4. Talks about his own singers behind their backs.

I know i should just move on, but I am seriously stumped as to why this guy is doing better at karaoke than I ever did.

-James

I wouldn't but I have seen groups of singers be intensely loyal to that kind of host if they are the ones getting the favored treatment--including having the host's attention while others wait to sing. Some hosts in our area run their shows by favoring the better singers and skipping the weaker ones or even ones who put in slower songs. The favored singers get their egos stroked and become a sort of protective mafia for that host, controlling where the crowds go through their own "followings." It can work for quite some time (especially as that host now has a show full of accomplished and fast paced singers that attracts listeners) but eventually seems to implode from the drama of it all. I just learned today that one of the venues that I was talking about on your other thread went out of business.

As a singer, I have little karaoke pet peeves. I mean, I like a fair rotation, I hate bad sound, and I hate nights with too few or too many singers.

That said... my main thing is the overall experience, and that trumps questions of legality, or of quality, or of anything else. At the end of the night, I ask myself one question:

"Did I have fun?"

If the answer is "yes," I ask myself one more:

"Will I go back?"

At the end of the night, song selection, rotation fairness, or any other thing gets trumped by "yes, I had a good time here with these people.

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Co-host of The Greatest Song Ever Sung (Poorly), a karaoke-themed podcast

James?? Did you go the my friends show last night?? That sounds EXACTLY like something she does. Like I mentioned in another thread, she and I share a venue, but she draws a bigger crowd than I do..even tho 'technically' I am a better host than she is,, she is a much more dynamic personality than I am... and THAT speaks volumes. Just like NoShameKaraoke said,,, it's all about the end result "did the customer have fun",,

One of the many reasons I am walking away from the biz soon,, I realize my shortcomings and I am unwilling to change them. I am not a party animal, I am a basic down to earth guy, who treats people kindly and fairly. Sounds like you and I are very much alike.

Some shows develop a reputation for being busy and fun. If there are a bunch of people there strictly to party they aren't going to notice the things mentioned. There is an issue with all the type crowds. All hard core singers and they will be upset with everything and will not be drinking much. Hard core party crowds tend to be loud and crude and very little quality entertainment value. Getting that right mix is very hard to do.

I think the best thing to do is to run your show for the type crowd you want to draw and dedicate yourself to it. If that is possible in your area..

Right. There's definitely room for everything, and one person's "fun" is another person's nightmare.

The one place I go to is often pretty dead. Rotations might be five singers or fewer. It's fun in it's own way. Another place you're lucky if you get two songs in a five hour karaoke night, and that place is also fun in it's own way.

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Co-host of The Greatest Song Ever Sung (Poorly), a karaoke-themed podcast

NoShameKaraoke - where can a bar afford to pay for entertainment with 5 people there? That's interesting to me. Almost every bar I do business with has some rule of thumb regarding revenue to profit to payout. Many are approximately 5-7 times what they pay the entertainment for the time period. How could any bar justify keeping something with 5 people going....

Bottom line is which makes the most money for the bar??

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"You know that I sing the Blues and I do not suffer fools. When I'm on that silver mic, it's gonna cut ya, just like a knife"-The SWINGCAT

A lot of my shows toward the end only had five to 10 singers but the bar was busy. I had shifted to a model for attracting people who didn't sing but where there to listen. I highly suggest this type model for those who wish to run a show for serious singer with a reasonable rotation and a busy bar. I've given the tips for this before but can give them again if needed.

Dead on. The owner will not care as long as drinks are crossing the counter.

I TRY MY BEST TO AVOID THE SHOWS WHERE THE KJ LOSES TRACK OF WHOSE TURN IT IS TO SING. These are the KJs who like to tweak the rotation so they can get their friends up more often by using "I lost track" as thehir excuse for playing favorites.

I like the shows that say that they put all new singers at the end of current rotation....until some of their friends show up and then those people get inserted into the middle of the rotation. Whatever is convenient for the KJ at the time is what their real rotation policy is.

i couldn't find anything, perhaps you could post it again

To answer the OP's question: NO.

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Electro-Voice Evolve 50... Taking Sound To The Next Level.

When I am hanging out, I am not much of a rotation watcher, unless I seem to get skipped more than once. I know there are those that watch the rotation like hawks. That annoys me, just as bad as a KJ that skips too many people. I love those that THINK you skipped them, when you actually didn't. They are fun. "When am I up?" or "How many more til I am up again?" I tell them how many songs are ahead of them. Either they accept it, or they get pissy. Not my problem. I am not going to push them ahead.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

I've been to shows where the KJ sings at the start of every rotation. These shows are usually very well attended and the rotation is usually close to two hours long. Getting skipped ONLY once would turn it into a FOUR hour wait to sing a song. Sorry but the KJ needs to be informed when he skips someone when it happens; not when it happens the second time. If I was singing close to end of the rotation and the KJ starts a new rotation without me getting a chance to sing; he needs to be told about it. It's as simple as that. If he inserts a few "new Singers" in front of me, because that is the way he usually rins his rotation, that is one thing. Starting a new rotation is an entirely different situation. Most singers know when they should be singing. It shouldn't be that difficult for a KJ to keep track of 15 to 20 names.

The new show I started last week, while not extremely busy, was steady. I had about 10 singers all night long, including the bartender. I sang after the first rotation, which is my custom, then took myself out. They all jumped on me to sing. Every time it was "my turn" I would try to bow out, and they wouldn't have it. It was a nice. I even stated that they were what matters to me, and they still insisted. It's a really good group. I am doing their Halloween party this coming week. It's going to be fun.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

Staying in regard to the OP's question- no, the host is clueless, and as a professional I couldn't sit and watch him/her.

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

" Disc based and loving it..."

I noticed I was getting several tables a night of people that did not sing. I used to approach these tables with books and would leave one close by if they said no thanks. I might would check in on them a time or two later but the bottom line is, they did not want to sing. Frustrated with the up and down nature of the singers I was trying to cultivate, mixed in with nights where the place was packed but with loud obnoxious people; added to it by the people that didn't sing but would complain about the change in the mood, I decided to try something different. I enlisted 10 or so of my better singers. I told them they would be helping me and they may get requests for songs they didn't necessarily plan to sing. I would then approach these tables of non singers (sometimes I had tables of one singer and three or four non-singers) and asked if there was anything they wanted to hear. When they gave me a song, I would approach one of my singers that I felt was suited for the song and tell them there was a request for it. They would sing it, the people at least at that table was very much into it, they were actually involved in the show as much as the people that sang, the singers were getting great feed back and there were lots of songs to be sung on the 5-10 singer nights. I may have had 5-10 singers, but I had lots of tables of people listening. I made the rounds at the bar and all the tables. I also usually tried to have someone else run the sound as this was almost a full time job. I still had nights of 20 singers but I stuck to the plan had made the rounds over and over again to people that didn't sing.

A guy has to be very careful doing this. I am happily married and I never had any issues but the requests, 9 out of 10, came from ladies. You key on the table but put a slight focus on getting the ladies to think music. So having a wife or girlfriend work this part of the deal while the KJ works the sound and rotation might be the way to go.

It wasn't long until I had people finding me and actively asking for a certain singer to do a certain song. NOW, you approach the singer and say there is a request for YOU to sing this song. That's a great feeling for a singer... As I saw it, it's a win win win.

You are right on MrBoo, you have to have an idea of the type of crowd you want to attract. This is your target market. The target market I chose to go after was the baby boomer crowd. They are the largest single slice of the current market and will be so for the next ten to 20 years, until they to pass away. I can run basically a Golden Oldies Show, and not have to spend too much on new material, that doesn't get sung any way. As a group they also have the most disposable income, during the last several years of this economic downturn we have been mired in. They are not rowdy and they do spend money on food and drink. Also they are in my generation so I relate well with them. Just a note for smooth the best way I have found out not to have singers come up and ask when are they up, it to have a large board with the names listed. This board is marked with dry eraser so it can be added to and taken off with no lasting effects. Then the singers can see who they are behind and won't bother you. Just remember to keep a matching list at the desk as well, with this double check system I rarely make a rotation mistake. We all blow once in a while at least make the effort to keep it straight and fair and you can't go wrong on the rotation.

I find your question, of the rhetorical nature......