Karaoke Forums

went to another karaoke show last night to meet up with some folks that go to my show.  (hangin' with the peeps i guess).  anyway i wanted to see how this other show was run and let me tell you.  i was NOT impressed.  we called the place first ti find out when karaoke started and were told 9:30.  we got there at 9:45 and everything was set up but only the jukebox was playing.  we left at 11pm and still no karaoke was sung, even though the KJ was wandering around the room talking to folks.  

in my show, i start at 8.  even if there aren't singers, i'll sing until i get someone.  maybe the KJ had a sore throat and couldn't sing, hence the jukebox?  i don't know, but she sounded fine when she was talking.  guess i'm venting a bit here, sorry!  

question...how do y'all handle that situation.  another topic, if no one is singing, what do you do to get them started?  i have a steering wheel that i bring in and a shower curtain.  i explain that EVERYONE sings in their car or in the shower.  they can use either prop so they won't feel nervous!  that usually breaks the ice, although i've never actually had someone use either prop.

personally, what I do is play mix music or music videos , will get up after song is done and announce the karaoke, or threaten them with "Feelings"... ! 'Course the crouwd that comes in there calls my bluff everytime!

Seriously though, I'll play a couple songs... no matter the format. Don't let the venue play the jukebox, no matter if it's their money or not. It's the KJ's job to do SOMETHING. they are getting paid. If no singers, then they themselves sing, or entertain somehow. I played a comedy show for twenty mins one time... had folks rollin'!

Finally I got up to sing a song, and while that was happenin' three other slips came in.

If a Karaoke Host lets the bar play the jukebox, pretty soon they won't need you at all.

Ay my regular gig I'm playing dj 20 or 30 min before start time. Sometimes during that time I got a pile of slips.. Usually I'm yackin on the mic 5 min before..Then singers that have never been there before (and you can tell because they have been looking in the book)  know its time to put in a slip..If I know there is a bunch of singers Im queing them before start and regs will just come up and tell me (no slip) and I put them in rotation...  Then if I got a bunch of singers I hardly ever sing unless I want to check the system... If there are hardly any singers I'll announce that  do take dance requests.....Sometimes the singers dont show up till 8:30 or 9

Just depends on the crowd.......

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I DJ/KJ on thursday nights. Start background music at 830 as im running around turning on tv's setting stuff up. I start the evening with Latin Salsa music until 10 or so when the Salsa band downstairs starts and all the salsa dancer folk head downstairs to the band. Then switch over to R & B, 80's, contemporary and old-school hip-hop and some Reggaeton in between karaoke thoughout the night. But I ALWAYS get there early to set up and ALWAYS start on-time ready to go at 9 with a "Welcome to _______ We got Karaoke 7 nights to 2 am I'm your DJ so dont be shy about it ---lets gets some slips and get a rotation, so strap  yourselves in and hold on for dear life cause were goin to get THIS KARAOKE SHOW ON THE ROAD!!"

Never dead airtime and never late starts and never jukebox. Im there to do A SHOW spin discs, sing a few songs, instigate some dance grooves , egg the singers on and run the show 9pm-2am every thursday night. And I seldom if ever SIT DOWN throughout the show and only take a quick pee break during  a song over the course of the evening. AND ABOVE ALL ELSE I'M NEVER EVER DULL or BORING on the announcers mic!

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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

Kurt does it aggrevate you when your playing there is some clown looking at the jukebox or even wanting to play it?  It does me   I went over one night and told this cute lil gal I was djing and if she wanted a song Id play it.. She says oh no i'm just trying to figure out the name of the song playing on that good system over there!!!!

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Just unplug it during the show and its a moot point!

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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

I had someone start a song on the jukebox when someone was singing. Dah!

The bartender quickly shut it down. How stupid do you have to be - especially since it's a amall bar.

I don't always start right on time if hardly anyone is there. I'll be on stage and sometimes visit with the few that are there. I would never just sit around and talk if people were waiting - even if it's just for music.

I like to have at least 2 singers there before I start. I know 90% of my clientele, so I know who they are. I've been around at least 12 years in the same place.

I'll sing to get the show started or encourage people to start, but I usually have a crowd and they don't need encouraging. They are usually hounding me to start early.

It is a laid back atmosphere and everyone knows me

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Maybe I missed something Babs was saying.

Babs, did you or anyone turn in a slip or ask the KJ if you could sing?

I can understand your being upset if he refused to let someone sing during the advertized karaoke period. But if no one showed interest in his show, I can see why he let the juke box make the noise for him.

I think it would be good practice for the KJ to yak it up a few minutes before show time by advising the audience that the show is about to start and they need to get their selections in now....Then if no one decides to sing, to let the juke box continue and between songs remind them that you are prepared to play their karaoke selections.

The alternative would be to announce that the juke box is unplugged but you are taking request for DJ music until a singer wants to sing.

Playing DJ at audience request will at least show the bar owner you are attempting to earn your money even tho nobody wants to sing.

I'm sorry - let me try again

I am the Kj and one of the patrons was singing a karaoke song. Some idiot played a song on the jukebox right in the middle of a person singing karaoke.

Usually the jukebox is off, but because no one was using the jukebox prior to karaoke starting I don't think the bartender thought to turn it off.

Does that make more sense?

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OOPS! Sorry Babs,

My reply above was intended for Crankitup, not you.

Crankitup, did anyone request to sing?

i'm not sure, keith.  i know we didn't.  i really just wanted to lay low and hear others sing and see how this KJ ran things.  the point i was trying to make was that if we hadn't asked, we wouldn't have even know it was time for karaoke.  the KJ never got on the mic and let anyone know, and truly didn't seem real interested if anyone wanted to sing or not.  the fella at the bar next to us was singing his heart out along with the jukebox, but i don't know if he ever turned in a song to sing.  the bartenders told me it was an extremely slow night, but even on my slow nights i try to put just as much energy into my show as i do if there's 100 people there.  i guess aggrevated wasn't the correct topic line for this.  i was more dissappointed that i didn't get to hear the KJ do her thing....or maybe i did!

KJ's who play music when there aren't enough singers to me are downright lazy.  They don't realize that numerous singers will show up and then leave when they find out that only music is being played.  I've been there - done that as a singer.  Sometimes as a KJ you have to work to get the show started by either singing or "encouraging" some of the others to sing.  There's one in-house show where I live that is run exactly like the show described in the initial post.  Sometimes they run karaoke and sometimes (in reality most of the time) they don't.  

I remember one time when I filled in for a friend of mine who is a KJ.  He assured me that there would be lots of singers at 9:00 PM Saturday night (when the show started).  I was all ready to go at 9:00 and guess what - a substantial dance/party crowd showed up and NO singers whatsoever.  So I just started singing all sorts of upbeat party songs to keep this crowd happy.  Finally, about 10:15 or so the singers started to show up.  If I would have played the jukebox most of the initial crowd would have certainly left the show and by the time the singers showed up some would have probably gone elsewhere because "it isn't happening here".

Some in-house shows discourage their KJ's from singing when they don't have "enough" singers.  I know of someone who worked for the venue I referred to earlier.  He got fired because he refused to run the jukebox when there weren't any singers and started singing a bunch of songs.  I understand the position of the managment of these places that karaoke is for the customers.  However, ultimately, karaoke is there to MAKE MONEY FOR THE BAR. Sometimes you have to "prime the pump" so to speak.

Such a statement done blanketly smacks of ignorance. You can't have seen all that there is to see. You've "filled in", but not ran shows for how long, and yet can blatantly say such things??

One thing I know of that makes a KJ (karaoke host, jock, whatever), is the ability to network with their collegues, and discuss things, not already come into such situations with their mouths open and their minds shut.

Inhouse systems fall by an entirely different set of circumstances than a contract with an outside company. Most reasons inhouse systems have these rules is the $40-$50 a night jocks don't have the experience nor the ability to read a room, and know how to encourage singers up. Hey, even the best of us have a silent night where it's hard to get the singers up there... when that happens, I'll sing one, play a few, talk on the mic until folks get tired of hearing me sing and especially talk!

Try karaoke games, contests, drink and food specials, get the bartender or waitress up to sing... use your mind....

lazy my freakin' FOOT!

"a substantial dance/party crowd showed up and NO singers whatsoever.  So I just started singing all sorts of upbeat party songs to keep this crowd happy"

Would have been better to have played the DJ with hot dance music and upbeat interactive mic work to retain that substancial/party crowd and then later blend the singers in an effort to make them all happy and buying drinks.....You gotta read the crowd and watch the door.....If the drinking dancers are leaving and all that is left is a smaller crowd of reqular singers, then it's time to shift to full karaoke rotation.....But don't let karaoke run off the folks who want to party if they are the majority and are spending more money than the karaoke singers.

As a KJ, if you are faced with a bar full of dancers and no singers, then stop singing and play what they want. Play it loud and with plenty of bass and highs. Watch them gather up next to the subs and duck the horns.

Play to the crowd. KEEP THE BUTTS IN THE SEATS FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!! AND NEVER EVER LET THE PLACE BE SILENT!!!!  Here's a hint too----people  get TIRED of hearing the KJ SING ONE SONG AFTER ANOTHER!! Like its some kind of a lounge act!
If it was a dance party then PLAY DANCE MUSIC!!!! HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO FIGURE OUT!

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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

Our most recent private party was slow to get started.  Made announcements, talked it up, and since it was a Christmas party, played a few Seasonal songs, and since we had access to the big screen TV, and the Christmas songs I was playing were CDG, it got a few folks to loosen up and sing from their seats.  Once they got the idea, and got over the initial shyness that seems to happen a alot for the first few minutes, it was a blast.  They ended up asking us to stay over an extra hour, which turned into 2 extra hours.  

Gotta be able to read the crowd for the type of music if nobody is singing, cause the wrong type of music can run folks off real quick.

I think I have been totally misunderstood concerning the issue of KJs playing music when they have no singers.  It is one thing to run a DJ type show or play a song or two and sing occasionaly or try some other PRO-ACTIVE approach to getting a show going (definately not lazy).  It is clearly another thing when a KJ plays a jukebox or an entire audio CD and goes over to the bar and plays a video game while waiting for the singers to show up.  This is what I actually meant by "playing music".  What Matt (Knightshow) does when he has a slow night is certainly appropriate (not lazy by any means).  Perhaps I should have made myself more clear on this issue.  Never did I intend to ever suggest that any KJ who plays an audio CD is "lazy" - my issue is with the passive approach to getting a show going that I described above.

mike, I am SOOO with you on that. I've seen "lazy" bartenders and staff do the same flippin' thing, and it irritates the bejeezus outta me.

The Karaoke Host has a job... that's to provide the entertainment. If singers aren't coming up, then do something unexpected like suggest that pole dancing will get you bumped to the top of the rotation (hence NO rotation! !)...

Sometimes we gotta be witty, we gotta be inventive, and we gotta be inflexible in our honest desires to provide the best outlook the finicky patrons of the bar deserve!

Ultimately, in the end, it's entirely worth it!

Oh and Mike... I kinda knew where you were going on your post, but I was making a specific point. There is a major difference betwwn the kinda kj you portrayed in your last post, as opposed to the general statement. Words, especially unheard ones, are very easy to misinterpret... you knew what you were saying, and especially what you meant... so did I.  And in the past we've had discussions about filler music vs banter vs nothing between singers... I go to a venue (a friend's show) who plays NO music between, and you can really feel the difference in the energy.

But by no means am I "right" in this... it's just my own opinion. Hey, in her world, she's the queen, and her patrons love her. They'd probably freak at my shows... too busy! They're MUCH more laid back!

So my apologies for an apparant "going off", when that's not what I was intending to do. I was being highly sarcastic, and sometimes the flavor of the typed word is entirely lost. Going back and rereading what I said, I can see where some might take it as jumpin' yer sh!t!!! ! NOT intended at all.

I for one am happy to have you posting here!  Welcome to the site!

i must completely agree with you here and in the original case in the initial post, the only reason we stayed in the seats was because we were to met ome folks there.  otherwise, we'd have been gone after about 30 minutes.


to this i must COMPLETELY disagree.  i don't profess to be some supernatural singer, but sometimes, especially at the last venue i rana show, people actually DID come in just to hear me sing.  it happens where i play now as well, although not as much.  my last venue was a bit like a lounge, come to think of it, though.  it was a bar/restaurant right next to a hotel.

i love the fact that there are many folks who are passionate one way or the other on this topic, though!  maybe from this i can learn that everyone has thier own style and no one style is going to please every karaoke patron.  how's that?

yep! you can have the most successful show and STILL have a dissatified customer! Nothing like having twenty folks come up and compliment you on your show and have three biyatch! !