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But according to some here, that would make me a pos host. Some have stated kj's shouldn't sing PERIOD if the rotation is large. So given that scenario that I outlined, would make me a rotten host if I sang that song when there are 35+ singers - correct?

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But I've seen plenty of hosts who would sing that Anniversary song, which I wouldn't mind, and then still sing a song when they started a new rotation, as well as a few duets in between. I knew one Female KJ who would sing 3 or 4 requests every rotation....or at least she said that they were requests.

I even agree here. A host shouldn't sing anymore than anyone else, be it a request or otherwise. If you cannot get all your requests in for the night, then I apologize & hope you come back another time. Or if I couldn't sing it, I will try to find someone that I know might be able to sing it that wouldn't mind using their turn for the request.

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Does the anniversary song get sung ASAP or does it get placed in the same spot that a new singer would be placed in the rotation? Does the Anniversary song get bumped up because John and Jane Doe have to leave soon? Just wonderin'

I would typically sing it at the end of a round, but sometimes circumstance would have me do it somewhere else in the rotation - especially if it a meaningful time - maybe the sentiment is at 11:11 PM - if that be the case, that is when I would try to work it in.

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Myself I'd probably try to find another solution. I personally refrain from singing once I get to five singers. I rarely if ever deviate from that. I'll sing in a supporting duet (as I feel that's part of my job) But, hosts that are known for not normally singing every rotation. A once and a while special dedication would simply be over looked. I would say you're taking the statement to the extreme. Commonsense combined with customer consideration always wins in the end.

Since you aren't actually a host, I will forgive you for not knowing what I am actually being paid to do.

I am being paid to attract paying customers and then keep them in the bar. I am not just a button presser or name caller. I am also being paid to entertain. Occasionally this includes singing a song or two when YOU may not want a host to sing at all. It doesn't detract from the show when done properly and it can even save a bad night from getting worse. If I see too many ballads in a row, I will sometimes jump into a rotation just to change it up. I am sure this will really flame some of you, but I watch my crowds and I know when they are falling asleep and paying tabs to leave. Sometimes a well timed song from a host that knows some up beat tunes can save a night.

So to me and what I know my job to be, I have saved a night, made money for the bar, and all-in-all lifted everyone's spirits.

But there is always that one singer out there that will get their flowery panties in a bunch unless a karaoke show is run to their exacting standards. To those people, I say save up $10,000 then start your own karaoke show and run it the way you want.

In the mean time, I am going to continue to run my shows the way they have been running successfully for a while now.

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-Chris

Taking it to the extreme is sometimes needed. Where is the line? The way some have been stating under no circumstances should a host be singing. Well I'm sorry, there are always exceptions.
I normally pull myself if I have more than 5 singers, but sometimes - yes I do feel an urge - I don't get out to other shows since I work mine 4 nights out of 7, but rarely get to do other shows as my wife usually has plans for other things on the weekend and she really don't enjoy karaoke anymore since she lost her voice. So I as a host on occasion DO want to sing. Again, not anymore than anyone else and it is NOT a regular occurance but have been known to sing at the end of every round. If that makes me a bad host, then so be it. 20 years, 7 nights in the same place tells me otherwise.

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I was at a karaoke place one night and there was a very nice older couple there with their daughter, who sang very well. The place was fairly crowded and the rotation was about an hour wait. The wife waited until her daughter had just got done singing and asked the KJ if her daughter could sing their wedding song before they had to leave in 10 minutes. Thosde are the requests that rub people the wrong way. She could have easily sung their wedding song on any one of her previous turns but she thought that she would get a freebie by having her mom go up there and ask for a "special favor".

Guess what happened? They stayed until it was the daughter's actual turn. I guess they didn't have to leave right away after all. Some people will try anything to get an extra turn....even become a KJ.

That is a different scenario, that is not a request for a kj to sing. That is regular rotation rules. Not what this discussion is about.

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You say that you normally don't sing if you have more than 5 singers. That being the case I don't think that your crowd would mind if you sang a song as the exception to your own rule every now and again. Some of these other KJs and former KJs are defending the policy of always singing in the rotation, even if there are 35 singers in the rotation. There must be a reason why you take yourself out of the rotation when there are more than 5 singers, right? Somewhere deep down, you think that it is wrong for a host to sing once the rotation reaches a certain number of singers, right? These other KJs who sing regardless of the size of the rotation are not doing it as a one off night. That is their regular routine. It is not the exception. It is the rule.

Some people like hamburger and some people like steak. McDonalds is very successful but there are many better places to eat. Every KJ will find a way to rationalize whatever it is that they do; whether it's using VOCO PRO Mics or taking up a spot in the rotation. You convince yourself that it's the right way so you can keep doing it that way, despite the numerous amount of people that wish you wouldn't. Most singers won't complain to a KJ about this practice because they know it would just be a waste of their breath. No need to upset the guy who decides when or if you will get to sing. It's just easier to smile and act as if yo don't mind. It's sort of like calling the Bouncer at the front door an a$$hole and then wonder why he doesn't let you in. On a forum like this, people are allowed to speak what's really on their minds because a KJ on the other side of the country can't keep me from singing at their show because I'll never be there. It allows people to excercise their freedom of speech without the fear of retaliation.

And some of us who are still just singers also don't mind, and don't get bent out of shape if the host takes a spot in the rotation. I agree on the other points--if the kj sings 4 songs to your every one, by request or otherwise, that's not a fair deal. If I was at, say, Chris's show, and he decided to sing in every rotation? I don't think it would bother me to wait an extra 2.5 to 5 minutes for my next turn.

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

exactly. the ones that sing every few songs like they are the star is wrong. but getting bent out of shape because in a 35+ rotation the host sings twice.....8 minutes over 5 hours is that big a deal....except for the divas who always think they show is all about them.

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Paradigm Karaoke, The New Standard.......Shift Happens

So a non-singing paying customer that requests a host to sing shouldn't have fun because they don't sing but would like to hear the song sung by the host - scenario - this requestor is one of the biggest spenders in the place, doesn't sing, enjoys to come and watch and listen to other singers, often makes requests for the host to sing - do you just shun them and tell them no because of a kj belief that we shouldn't sing, or do you try to make the non-singers that are also spenders happy as well?

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You are entitled to your feelings. I'd rather see two more of the paying customers sing in those 2 spots taken up by the host....especially if I would have been one of those 2 people. If you go to enough karaoke shows you will inevitably find yourself in the situation where you were only one or two spots away from singing again when the show was ended by either the KJ or the bar manager. If I waited an hour or more, thinking that I was going to sing again, and didn't get to sing because the KJ was singing multiple times in a very long rotation night, I wouldn't be too happy. There is a karaoke bar that I go to that has alternating KJs. I go every other week. Nothing wrong with the bar or the food or the service. One KJ does a great fair job and the other one is usually too drunk to do his job properly. It's not all about the location.

That wouldn't happen at my show. If you have a slip in and I call no more slips - that means everyone that has a slip in WILL in fact sing their last song. I will guarantee that - whether I decided to sing last song or not. If you did not have a slip up and no more slips were called, then I'm sorry, come back tomorrow to sing - whether you just walked in as a new singer or were sitting there all night!

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I try to let people know that we are probably on the last round so tell me what they want their last song to be. But I'm in a different situation in that the bars in this state don't have curfews and if all sides are willing we can go all night if we want to. (4 am is probably the longest I have gone.) But if I sing a song, I can stay 3 minutes later to make up for it. Of course I realize that isn't good enough because that last singer can't wait those 3 minutes due to having to get home for the baby sitter but......

But this pressure about not wasting a single second of potential singer time is so ridiculous that for months I resisted playing the Cupid Shuffle even when everyone in the room wanted it. Now I play the Cupid Shuffle and no, I don't have a warning sign out that says "Karaoke Tonight Except for One Dance Song."

When I run a show (the rare few that I might actually host), I put myself in the top of the Rotation. I continue to do so until I get to about 6 or 7 Singers steady. That seems to be the point where I feel the show can hold its own throughout the rest of the night. The reason I take myself out of the Rotation at this point, is because once I get people coming back and forth (to speak with me, ask me questions, make song requests, etc...), I am too busy to be able to think about what I might want to sing next. With a low number of singers, I have more time to relax, and putting myself in the Rotation doesn't hurt anyone. Once I get to that MAGICAL NUMBER, at that point, my focus is solely on everyone else that's there. AND, for those that feel I took up their spot to get "ONE MORE SONG" in for the night, and couldn't sing because I "STOLE HIS/HER SPOT," well, that doesn't happen at my show. I keep track of the Rotations (how many people are in it), and make an announcement at about 45 minutes before the end of the show, that I am no longer taking any Song Requests Slips. I will complete whatever Rotation I am running, even if I run 30 minutes past the time I am supposed to end the show. So, if you were in that Rotation, YOU WILL SING. Now, if you just happened to walk into the place and decided you wanted to sing, or if you were there for a while and you didn't sing at all during the night, and I had just made my announcement, I probably would still let you get your song in.

I have NEVER minded if the KJ continued to sing at his own show while hosting, as long as he/she only sang once within the Rotation. This was how I was first exposed to Karaoke (the KJ always starting the new Rotation), and I never minded then, I still don't mind years later. When I go out to a Karaoke show, I enjoy ALL of the Singers (KJs included). I may enjoy some of those Singers a little bit less than others (due to their choice of song, or maybe that they just can't carry a tune, or some other reason), but I still like the Entertainment. The one thing I can't tolerate is a KJ who likes to hog the show. IMO, singing once per Rotation is not hogging the show. And, if I didn't get a chance to get one more song in because the KJ happened to use that allotted time, so be it. If it wasn't the KJ who used up that time, it was the next Singer, or the Singer after that one, and so on, and so on, and so on.

The analogy is right on. Like I said, karaoke is about the customers who came out to sing. From this thread, I have learned who the self centered, egotistical KJ's are. These people, IMO, have no regard for their customers. If you want to sing, go someplace on your off night and sing your heart out. If you're working, your job is to host, not sing.

There sure are a bunch of un-professional KJ's out there, aren't they?

Well drop your egos and get this straight...

It's about your customers, NOT YOU! (totally fu...ing amazing)

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