Karaoke Forums

Sometimes I get really rude but no one notices the difference.

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Okay, who took my pants?

I'm a very laid-back dude. I've got my peeves like anybody, but rarely does anger come into play. That said, here's what does it for me:

- Insistence on being bumped up in the rotation. Just asking me is annoying, yes, but it doesn't make me actually angry; it's when you feel as though I owe it to you to compromise my integrity that I get very, very rude. "Hey buddy/chief/bro/other insincere indicator of false kinship, I gotta go soon. Can I go next?" gets a polite but firm "sorry, but I can't do that" from me. Pushing it further gets you actual anger and possibly public degradation.

- A good singer who insists on "helping out" with everyone else's song and gets defensive when you nip it in the bud. I'm not the karaoke gestapo, if you wanna bring your friend up for backup once in a while, have a ball; but I have singers who routinely offer their "help" to every singer who sings a song that they like. Often, the singers politely oblige, and then when I put the kibosh on it, the first singer claims that "they said they wanted me to help!" I recently went Hulk on a regular for this. After the show, I calmly told her that I'm sorry I yelled at her, but I have a rotation to follow and that my integrity is part of what has taken me this far in my business. She said she understood, and then followed it up with "it was weird -- like, you're always so nice, so when you yelled at me, it was kind of scary, but also kind of sexy, but I also kind of respected you more." We're still cool. At least she was self-aware.

- Good singers who get visibly offended by them not being able, for whatever reason, to sing when they want to sing. For example, showing up 10 minutes before closing and expecting to get their song in, then rebutting my refusal with "but you've heard me sing, you know I'm good." Sorry sweetie, this is an amateur hour by nature, I didn't just reserve ten empty minutes for a killer closer. Or, my favorite, "you let all these terrible people sing just as much as you let me sing." Right, because I'm fair. What a horrible person I must be.

This last category has been responsible for some of the most blatant rudeness I've ever dealt out. Recently had a girl drop that first quote on me after showing up drunk when I was trying to cram as many folks as possible into 10 minutes of time; when I refused, she called me an [inflammatory word that means anus] and said "for your information, I actually work Wednesday nights, so I can't come out here as early as everyone else." She just pressed my buttons and I called her out on being entitled and rude before informing her that "I couldn't possibly give less of a [profane word for excrement] about what you do on Wednesday nights, because you're sure as [same profane word for excrement] not singing here anymore."

She showed up the next week and apologized profusely. She's since been a model regular.

Thing is, my shows are fairly popular; they're populated by so many awesome, fun people, and I love having a standing date to see these people every week, but crowds that big are bound to get their share of d-bags. When people want you to bow to their every whim, I don't think you can afford to be a pushover. Sometimes, you've gotta flip the a-hole switch.

I try not to get upset at things but one thing that has me biting my tongue through the smile is the "visiting host" who makes friends with all the singers during the show all the while telling them how they have more songs, more experience, would get them up faster, thinks I skipped them, invites them to his house for party as it is cheaper to bring your own liquor than go to a bar, etc. Then while I'm tearing down he is telling the owner he will work for free because he misses doing it and is bored and then lists how busy he is doing this and that event--and then tells me that his biziilion song hard drive isn't hurting anyone as he doesn't take money for his shows. This is a composite of a few characters in the area.

Ugh, this. All of this. Even the ones who don't try to weasel into your show but still snipe at the way you run things and try to give you passive-aggressive "pointers" annoy me. I'm like, dude, we have a full bar of people having a grand old time and this is what it's like every week -- clearly, I'm doing it right, please shut up, thanks.

Add they are rude and expect to be singing by the time the ink dries...

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If you don't have anything nice to say, say it sarcastically!
The Truth often gets in the way of a good story.
Record companies should make every song in a karaoke version and kill the dispute!

I, too, do not really get angry or rude but there are some things that rub me the wrong way.

- People who show up late, then complain when I tell them it will be about an hour or so before they can sing... but that's not the worst part. The worst part is when they finally do get called up to sing, they don't know what to sing so they try to take forever deciding on something. Come on, you had over an hour to think of a song! Now is not the time!!!

- Karaoke hoppers who text me they are on their way and to put them in rotation now. Sorry, I don't do it. When they show up and say, "Hey man, did you get my text?" I always say, "Nope. What do you need?" They always say, "I texted you earlier to put me in line so I wouldn't have to wait." My reply is always, "Sorry, I don't accept text requests to be added to the rotation. You must be present in the bar to get in line."

- People who insist to sing after we are done. After I announce the last singer, there is always that person who comes up and says, "Hey man, let me sing one song after him/her. You know I'm good and people will love it." I tell them sorry, but that's it for the night. Then they just stand there and keep begging. Grrrrrrrrr... gets on my last nerve!

- As others have mentioned, people who try to use mind games on you to bump them up. This happened to me last night. One of my diva singers (male) asked me 30 minutes before closing if he would get to sing again. I told him I didn't think so because of the number of ppl in the cue. He says, "Oh well, just find a way to squeeze me in." I told him I was sorry but I don't bump people up. As he was walking away, he says, "Just do it. Make it happen." As the last singer was singing, he comes back up to me and says, "Hey man, so you mean to tell me you are not gonna let me sing after her?" I told him no, I can't. He says why not? I said because we ran out of time. So then he goes, "Man, so it's like that huh? Wow. I am a regular here and this is how you treat me?"

Omg. I almost lost it at that point. I told him that I wasn't treating him any differently than I treat everyone else. When we run out of time, that's it. We are out of time and nobody else can sing, plus I even told him 30 minutes ago that he couldn't sing because we didn't have enough time. He gave me this funky look and just said, "Wow man. Wow." And then he walked away.

I love my job, really I do, but sometimes there are those few bad apples that can come along and just put a damper on a great evening.

I get this from the insecure or inexperienced hosts, some singers will bite & go check it out, usually they end up back at my show for the reasons completely opposite to what they claimed. Otherwise I welcome & get in a lot of visiting hosts that we all respect each other.

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

The main ones I get it from are pirate types and some old timers who "warned" me long ago that "the one thing they learned in this industry was you protect your territory." They seem to think that dirty tricks and trolling other shows for customers is just part of the business. I have some friends who are also hosts and we don't do that type of thing to each other.

I encourage people to go to other shows.......so they can see how much better ours are

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-Chris

I was reminded last night of how much I despise people who game the system by signing up under different names in order to get an extra turn.

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Never the same show twice!

The only thing that really gets me upset is the venues that don't want to pay a decent rate, because somebody else in town will do 'karaoke' for 50 bucks a night. Or the ones who try to haggle price. I wonder if people go into a restaraunt, look at the menu, order, then try to negotiate the price. It seems to only be an issue with bars (and the not-so-great ones at that), but I do get a little rude when a venue wants to set my prices.

You let them? As far as I am concerned, it means you miss not only that turn but your next one as well.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

I'd like to go to one of your shows, but the closes we will get to Redmond or Kent is Wilbur, WA this summer.

Yeah I've actually turned people back once I find out it's the same person, stating over the mic - hey you JUST sang under this name, i'll put your current slip under your other name - then get the next singer up.

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

Oh yeah that's a good 3 1/2-4 hour drive depending on how you drive.

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

By Motor home this time of year so more like 5 hours each way. No good places to stay. We have tried. I stay away from western WA. too many people ect.

But the best karaoke

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

i blew up and yelled at a patron tonight (nobody witnessed it) and probably scared him away. i know i scared my bartenders (because they said how much they loved me and kissed me on the cheek at the end of the night)

BUT AH, IT FELT SO DAMNED GOOD TO YELL

the bad part is this particular patron may have some mild mental issues. so i shouldn't have yelled. but this punk is a bully and selfish.

here's the deal: he visits less than 3 times a YEAR for the past what 6 or so years. and i haven't seen him in a long while. he's a local artist, older than me and sings mostly cover songs very averagely if that. mild mental, noticeable physical issues going on. he'll buy a soda, sing 1-3 karaoke songs and jets before an hour goes. one day, 5 years ago he asked if i could play one of his latest original songs from his cd he made with his record label that he brought along. i said sure. what's 1 song gonna hurt? i usually say YES to whatever any patron asks before they finish their sentence. and i do my best to find a way to make it happen. i don't mind the challenge. i'm accommodating. i'll even give folks a free plug. i'm very, very nice.

so, it started off with 1 song. visits later, he started pushing for me to play other cuts off his albums in-between karaoke singers. SAY WHAT? no "please", never tips, no offers of buying me a drink, no nothing. he'll get mad and say, "put the volume higher. higher!" when i play his song as a filler. he'll demand i'll play a song AGAIN, even. i always oblige, i don't say a word. i know he'll be gone soon. no, i'm not afraid of him or nothing. i know i only see him at most 3x a year. it's not a big deal. his music isn't listenable. it's wrong for the crowd. wrong venue, too. but i do it. simply because i'm a nice guy. it won't kill me to do it. i do it for others, so i try to treat everyone fairly.

tonight was it. hadn't seen him in probably a year and a half or more. my right foot didn't cross into the venue yet before he shoved his latest cd literally right on my nose and said I want you to play my latest song in-between singers. No "hello," no nothing. No, I haven't seen you in a long while, what's new. I told him politely, please give me 5 minutes to settle in. It was all I could think of, I was taken completely off-guard. 2 minutes later he's at my side as I'm setting up asking when are you going to play my cd? All I did was look at him like, dude are you f-ing nuts? Because I had no words. He backs off. I set up and start off the show. I made up my mind I'm not touching his cd. I should've made that dude sing something first. He hands me his cd telling me like the 5th or 6th time which track he wants me to play which he keeps repeating and I calmly tell him not tonight. I'm not playing anything of his.

This dude straight asked me like 50 more times in a row not leaving my side. Never offering anything in return. Then I blew up. (I should've made him sing first.) I grabbed him and forced him outside of the venue to yell at his face.

OF COURSE, after yelling at his face for a full 10 minutes on how can he be so careless on treating another person this way who has always been nice to him, this fool is going to be like, "but you always play my music. are you telling me you're not going to play my music tonight?" I'm like NO! Feel free to sing karaoke, hang out, I'm just not playing anything of yours tonight. WTF, man. you act like i owe you something. nobody ever asks for a copy. he isn't selling copies. WTF is wrong with this dude?

he never sang anything. finished his coke. waited another 15 minutes standing at the door looking at me with his cd in his hand. my God. and of course before he left he went over to the bartenders to see if they'd be sympathetic.

by the way, in that 10 minutes i yelled at him in his face i listed specifically how he needs to treat karaoke DJs in the future. i told him let us get in the venue first and set up. give us space. ask us how we're doing, our family. be polite. ASK if it ok if we play a cut from his cd. offer to buy us a drink or give us a tip. and i finished by saying i won't play your cd because you're a selfish person . i bet you're gonna finish your soda and leave without singing a song just because i won't play your cd. he said no, you're wrong, i'm gonna sing a song.

ah, but i was right.

I would LOVE to check ojut Lonman and Chris' shows, but there are two things stopping me.

1. I'm always broke
2. I'm too damned cheap to save up for a passport

And you know we don't let just anyone over our borders