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Yeah, that's pretty much what I mean. Jazzy is a hail of a vocalist...... you can tell she's had lots of training. AND... I think other than her "training" she has a great "natural voice" as well. Combine both, and you have a great performer. But that was my point..... we all do our own thing. I can't hear me EVER doing say, a "show tune"... LoL at the thought... but nor can I see Jazzy stampin' her foot with the rythm and belting out an old Bill Monroe bluegrass tune- it's not who she is.



I've never had a girl go to that extreme..... though I've seen plenty who think their the icing on the cake in a karaoke bar. But hey, I guess if that's who they want to be, and what they want to portray..... more power to them.  There used to be a lady who hung out at our local place (haven't seen her in a few months) who thought she OWNED every Gretchen song that came out, and didn't really look too happy if someone else put one up first. I often did, cause I like to sing some of them too, but my lands- she didn't really own the dang songs, Lol.  People like that get on my nerves, but they're pretty easy to ignore.

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

With me, it's the bar scene. I can stay home, and sing half the night. (which I do on occasion, it's not a biggie for me to karaoke with friends/family for 6-7 hours on a weekend).... and I'm fine. Go to a bar- ONE night, and 99% of the time, I'm hoarse by the end of the night. I really can't tolerate breathing in smoke.

Though, lack of sleep, being run down, not eating right...... I've noticed those kinds of things will show in my voice first as well.

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

So back to the original question, would both of you, Charmin and Amanda (and everybody else), always go ahead and take your turn? Remember the person ahead did an incredible job, the crowd loved it and because your voice is so hoarse right now, you probably won't sound good.  Your not able to "play on an even playing field" right now.  I'm just curious how concerned singers are about what the crowd thinks.

Charmin, don't you miss singing in public at all?  You always seemed to enjoy it a lot when things went well (not much smoke, etc.).

You can insert my name in spot three if ya wanna, Steve.  It wouldn't bother me at all.  I follow talent like Jazzy, Jason and Billy EVERY week.  We have some AMAZING singers that come to our show regularly.  

How do I do it?  Welllll.. I'm totally comfortable with the fact that THEY are spectacular.......and could be performing professionally if luck/circumstances were to allow .... and I'm ME ... a person who LOVES to sing Karaoke, average as can be.  I'm not there to "out sing" anyone ... and typically speaking.... neither are any of them.  We are ALL there to just have a blast  ... and our talent levels are what they are.   And as for being humbled by the audience... NOT AT ALL.  At least, not at the karaoke shows that we participate in or run.  The Audience is simply terrific to EVERYONE. I will say that singing in the group you've put together above would definately make me try to do my very best .... but I can honestly say I wouldn't "pass" simply because I was singing in the company of incredibly talented singers.... nor would I feel humbled or inferior.  I think its all in how you think about the evening.  For me... and (with the exception of one singer that really does feel he is the "king") everyone else that I sing with .. we are all just there for the fun and love of singing... terrific, good, average or tone deaf.  

As for competitions ... again, just gotta approach it with ... i'll do my best and if that isn't good enough for the blue ribbon .. then it isn't.  I would NEVER participate in Karaoke competitions either as hostess or singer... just not what Karaoke is supposed to be about.  But.. I did my share of competitions in HS ... for flute.  Just did my best ... and tried NOT to listen to anyone else.  If anything got the best of me.. it was my own nerves... not being psyched out by another competitor.

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[shadow=tomato]If you want your significant other to pay attention to EVERY word you say::
  TALK IN YOUR SLEEP   [/shadow]  

Odie...... you KNOW how I get when my voice is going downhill. You've heard me say "I should change my song"...... "Maybe I shouldn't take my turn"...... "I think I'm going home early"...... (like I ever do that, haha) But you've heard me pitch a biotch plenty of times cause I didn't think I'd be able to get back up and carry out a song. And as you also know- I usually get back up there anyhow, scratchy throat or no.

Have you ever once heard me say "I don't want to sing after her"? (or... "him") I don't think I've ever paid much attention to the order of singers. But, then again..... take a close look at our bar. They all know me, they've heard my worst and my best, and for the most part.....  even if it is a bad vocal night for me because I'm getting a little hoarse, I'm quickly forgiven.  :D

Maybe..... if I was at a new place where I hadn't sang before...... maybe it would be different. I dunno. I used to be terribly shy and shake like a leaf getting up to sing. I don't know if I've really gotten more comfie singing.... or if it's just cause I feel so "at home" there. Guess I'll find out when I go to Spinning Wheel thursday. (yeah, come hail or high water.... I'm going thursday.... gotta try out the new KJ in town yanno.... they only do it on thursday though)  SO- we'll see how brave I am at a new place, with new people, and a KJ who doesn't know me. Maybe I'll whine about how good the girl before me sings..... but I doubt it.

I mean, how "hoarse" are you talking? So bad that you can't hit notes? Like in mini-laryngitis? Cause then- I wouldn't be at karaoke. But, just getting "smoke throat" from being at the bar? You know me.... have a drink and suck on a few lemons.  :D

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

Yes, I do. You know that. But...... you were there the last couple times I went. The smoke in that place has gotten to be a royal pain.... and a huge health hazard. You said yourself, even the heavy smokers are complaining now cause it's so bad.

I can't tolerate it, and the thought of permanent voice damage from going there too often... is scary enough to keep me content staying home.

But as I said in my last post above.... I'm gonna try Spinning Wheel, see how it is there. Might just find me a new "home away from home". We'll see.  :D

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

i personally would RUNNNNN........my way of thinking is if someone gets up and is a very good singer that just makes me sing better, karaoke is fun and i do try to have fun but if i'm in a room with some great singers better then me r not, i do my best to step up to the plate and give 100%, thats just who i am...i love to compete if its with no one but myself....its very rare that i am the best singer in the club, to me anyway....but knowing i'm not, i will never do a song that i don't know r is out of my reach....i stay with what i do best...wheather its blues, country r whatever... i will always be prepared ifffff i can be...altho just last week i got up and did a duet with the bartender a song i had never sang before, it was fun and that is what its all about in the end....but after that i will go back to my way of singing....god i was soooo bad on that song....ll...i have talked a few ladies into getting up to sing that have never sang in puplic before, way to scared, but saying they alwaysss wanted to get up and sing...so i would get up with them, we would sound horried but she had the time of her life and will always remember that night.... not because of me but that SHE finelly did get up....to me thats what its all about....

so i guess after typing this i feel 2 ways about it...i don't mind singing with the big boys, yet i really love singing with the not so great singers, heck i don't care if they can carry a tune r not....as long as they have a good time...i had my good times, its there turn now the way i look at it....and no,  i'm not putting myself above them, i know my place, and i'm fine where i am and its for sure no where near the best.... i will also be the first to tell a great singer just how good i think he/she is....

and blue? i wouldn't want u sounding like me either....l...that would be scary to watch...stay true to who u r....can't lose that way...

and steven i bet ur alot better then u think u r...

take care

yeah some people complain, but they still show up anyway!  LOL   Going to Denny's ONCE a week won't cause permanent damage (temporary yes), but it is a pain for sure.  It's such a small room, I don't understand why he can't fix the problem.
He like every other bar owner is probably too cheap!  

Okay, glad you took that like I meant it. I saw you had replied here and I immediately thought "Okay, I pi$$ed Billy off".

You get what I'm saying. I wasn't downing anyone by saying I wouldn't want to sound like them. I just.... am me..... and all of you..... are you. And that's really the best. What a sad, boring world it would be if we all sang the same.

But, on the other hand...... I do sound a hail of alot like you when I sing Conway.  LOL

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

Hmmmmmmm....... too bad a health inspector wouldn't just "show up" some saturday night. Wonder if they could really do anything about that.

He most likely is too cheap...... and no matter HOW bad it gets, the town drunks/ karaoke die hards will ALWAYS go there. What he needs- is some stiff competition in town. Then he'd start making ammends to get his crowd back.  :yes:

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

no i knew what u were saying and i agree, its like asking the question....if u wanted to sing like anyone else who would it be? ...i'm ok with who i am, so i wouldn't change it....even with all my flaws....

thats what lifes all about excepting who u r and what u can and can't do...but doing ur best to improve on both....

(But, on the other hand...... I do sound a hail of alot like you when I sing Conway.)

then u need to drink more, that sure cure it....ll

You just..... managed to say it in ALOT less words than I did, I babbled on for a few paragraphs- you put it in a few lines. (maybe that's a gal thang? ) Lolll  No, then again.... Steven does it too.  LOL



 >off to chug a few, and put in my Conway cdg<  :wave:

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

i thought steven was female.....he told me he was...that explains him wearing that over coat in every pic he sent me....but then again his makeup looked great...feeling kinda sick now

I don't think I know what Steven is......  LOL  Nor do I want to.

(Steven, don't be hatin'..... Billy brought it up, na me)  :wave:

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

Depending on style and genre, there are VERY few that are industry pro singer's that can sing the way you sing.



To you anyway is key  :)   I think most pro singers have probs hearing themselves, and I know for a fact MOST actors cringe watching themselves perform.. For some reason people are TOUGH on themselves.. I suppose in this world we learn we must be, because people ARE critical.... Yet it makes it tough for us to know when we excel too.. It becomes impossible to recognise it for some reason.. There is ALOT of talent out there... Yet at a certain level,  you end with a group of highest level of talent ability vocalists competing, and none are in actuality "better than" the others, except for certain individual performances. It becomes subjective, yet usually at a given time one MIGHT have the ability to impress in a given genre, or on a "better day" etc.  Little things such as stage presence and charismatic performance usually seals things too, the difference might even be visual presence, yet that's showmanship,and at the highest level of talent LITTLE visual things bluff the audience, it's all apart of this. Alot becomes psychological play..or act as well as musicianship yet that can preclude "raw talent"... because some things need to be learned... I call this level of ability, the artist's artist, or  musicians musicians....

The difference between the "pro" and "amateur" designation usually isn't level of artistic ability.  There are more talented amateurs in terms of quantity and ability than number of professionals we know of...








You ARE one of the "big boys" in terms of your singing ability.  You are the "local guy" who noone really knows,  that seems to crawl out've nowhere and smokes the pro passing thru. The type that humble's the bigger known names assuming they ever get the oppt to hear you.  It was said in a different thread in here recently, (and quoted by perhaps Jimmy Mesi a monster guitar player) that every decent sized city or every location somewhere for that matter has a monster ability talent, or in the case of cities HANDFUL of monster ability talent either guitar-wise, or singing-wise, etc.

While people knew who SRV was, there've always been others hiddin in cities somewhere that just don't have the same drive to "get known" perhaps because of their personality, life-style, or they just can't be bothered with the BS of the music industry, and life-style involved in the performing arts...

The industry pro's ARE NOT the best.  Just the ones we know.

Point being, at your level of singing talent Billy, all that varies in terms of "who might be better than you" is style preference, and quite subjective.. Your level of talent IS up around the 8-10 area depending on MANY things of course... NOONE is a constant 10, and depending on style you try, it might or might not be "your area" of singing according to some...Yet when it comes to blues, or MANY types of ballad there are few that have more ability... Only differences at your level are the listener's subjective preference...

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

I brought Don's example into a different realm than "just Karaoke".  The way he phrased this made it appear from MY perspective as a performer in different areas of music that the "audience" has now been primed, and the bar has been raised..


Folks, this is my point,  I've listened to those of you that responded sing at some point, and YOU ALL are VERY good vocalist's given your particular and respective genre. You don't represent "Average bar hack" singer, or those of us that would LOVE to be able to sing, but just can't.. You've joined Singer's Showcase, and participate here because you likely enjoy an area as adults, that's been reinforced in someway by the fact that you have talent, and this feeds a cycle and enables you to comfortably submit your material in here...

The fact that you do submit your material in here, and HAVE put it up for rank and critique among some AMAZING talent here means YOU in particular already have the confidence to be in a competitive environment, and do feel more comfortable than most competing. Simply put, YOU ARE competition level singers already answering this question...


Yet let's step this back to Don's question regarding "you're up next", but in this case the "you" who is up next, is NOT the talent level of those of you that feel comfortable enough to submit your material in singers showcase for the WORLD to hear !

Don made the comment, "The audience has been primed for talent", so to me, the bar has now been raised as to what's "acceptable" !

Let's assume the "you" in this case is someone that wants to sing, and enjoy themselves, yet know's they aren't very good..  I think Topher came closest to what I personally feel.  While I agree with what Tim said regarding "Taking Karaoke too seriously", as a past touring and professional performing artist, to me Karaoke is STILL music and musicianship.. and performance is something a person does in front of others...hence, if you get up in front of a large group of people, THEY DO judge you...I would not belong in a line up with ANY of you.... yet most that sing for fun in bars wouldn't either...

What I did was view this from a competitive perspective, this was Don's question..

there are a few ways to perceive this



In my case I was raised in competition from the time I was 4. I was rated, and performed for "Critique" in front of panels of instructors... I HATED IT !

Now Tim perceives this as Karaoke is for "enjoyment" I'm taking it too seriously..
The way I viewed Don's question is from the perspective of a person who honestly on a "ranking scale" would be about a 3..  Assuming I sang among pro-amateur singers you can be DAMN SURE as a person brought up in a performing arts environment, I just can't go on stage and perform and make an (@$%&#!) out've myself. If your a concert violinist, or even a talented ability instrumentalist how would you feel if you were starting out on a new instrument, beginner ability in THAT area, and it just so happened the others that were performing on French Horn were near expert ability players ?  To a large audience, YOU WOULD be the worst of the four in the lineup I gave, while some aren't phased by that, I took Don's question into the competitive realm... Which is I suppose IN PART what he was asking

Some don't consider this competition, to them it's for fun...

Others of us view this exactly as Topher stated...  The fun CAN somehow take a back seat when singers number 4,5,6 just happen to be a group of artists that are together visiting a new bar, and are all spectacular ability singers. The audience now is enjoying pro level entertainment, and their expectations have been changed from doing their own thing with "Kappy" type wannabe's trying to sing in the background, and Billy, Charmin, CCindy, Jason, Jazzy talent all request a song suitable to THEIR genre of singing, and THEY are crowd pleasers... The crowd is now enjoying listening to talent... and focused on something beyond "hack" sing along...
I am critical when it comes to musicianship, I'm self critical, and was raised..

"Unless you can do something well, you don't perform it on stage"

So sure, to me Karaoke is a new and different concept I suppose..

THere are also examples however that ARE friendly musician gatherings,  I think we mentioned them regarding bluegrass, and folk festivals where ALL participate...

THere are also friendly competitions when all know one-another and it's known who's better than whom, and noone cares, yet I don't view large audiences as being this non-judgmental, or accepting and kind; In fact I view MANY in a large audience as harsh and critical. I won't get up cold and perform unless I feel it's "performance quality" material... Although I know the Brubeck bros, and Dave, and studied with a well known jazz pianist in the 70's (John Mehegan... and I always SUCKED, never got good in that genre... yet we got along, and these weren't snobs) there were cases I felt VERY comfortable, in fact that it was an honor playing bass for better pianists, or playing among them knowing very well I wasn't that good. Yet it was understood in these cases, I accompanied talent as a bass player ( Teddy Wilson pianist for Benny GOodman Glen Miller), and if I sat in as trying to play piano, it was known by the small venue crowd I WASN'T good, because I wasn't the pianist, I was just sitting in and having fun.. there was no raised bar in this case, or judgemental critical large audience. The problem I have is that in a large crowd of listener's MANY aren't kind, and they DO compare and judge.  I suppose that's what I fear..I never assume a large audience IS NOT judgmental..In the case of Don's example or initial post, he gave us two options...and I made the assumption the crowd would NOT want to hear me after hearing the pro !

1) Why should I care, Karaoke is for fun  (Tim's perspective)
2) The bar has been raised, and the audience is fired up for talented performers
                   (this is how I read it, and assumed it now was a tacit competition)

I don't view large audiences as being kind.  To me if you can't do something well, ESPECIALLY if you consider yourself to be an artist, why "perform" it ?
The answer to some of course being.  "Because that's not what Karaoke is about"..

Interesting perspectives !

I always assume audiences are judgemental, and critical if getting up "cold" in front of strangers and a large crowd of them...When performing cold on a stage in front of a crowd






See why I don't like to get up on stage ?    LMAO



.

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

I agree, audiences can be very judgemental, even in bars during karaoke that is suppose to be "fun."

Simply put, the only way I would actually miss my turn is if I felt my throat need some down time before the next song. It wouldn't matter if the person before me sang like an angel or hee-hawed like a donkey. If I wanna sing, I'm gonna sing.

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I'd still look like a bigger jackass  

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

interesting way to look at it steven...ur wrong but still a different way to look at it....ll...kkkkk

when i'm in a club and its karaoke, i see the crowd as people that want to have a good time, not really careing what each other sound like...good r bad,  i see people drinking, i see people drunk, and some sober, i don't really feel that in karaoke people r thinking, ok the bar has been raised, its more like ok get yo butt down its my turn to sing....l...no matter if they can sing r not....

when there was no karaoke all but the band were wannabees so to speak...not that there talent was any less in some cases but hadn't gotton the chance....but i think that was rare...now its like the people r saying ok...band step back its OUR turn to shine now....and thats fine with me....most and i'll say maybe 90% r NOT there to judge but to have fun, get there 15 min. of fame...yes most will ifffff there even listening will sit at there table and decide if ur good r not.....TO THEM....judging? i guess so but its not like there paying to hear you, so its a very relaxed way of judging....i look forward to hearing very good singers but i like hearing the everage joe/jane also....and well below average.... those have the most fun i found...

i understand ur view steven and i might feel the same way if all that were there were fellow musicians, but there not, very few r....and that does make all the differents to me.....both being in bands might make us look at things different but the truth is were no longer in the bands and were...ok i am just as average as the next guy getting up to sing....and i try to act that way to when i get up....theres no....look at me i'm better then u r....its JUST FUN ....if i do screw up...and i doooo....oh welll...not getting fired for that....

in the bands u know that we had to stay a tad....ok i started to say sober, but i'll say less drunk...l...it was our job,you had to be on....r lose ur job, just like any other job...now there is no job, drink all u want, just have a blast, heck u can sit in if u want....thats karaoke to me...oh yea....theres also no paycheck, and less woman....
...hmmmmm karaoke SUCKSSSSSS....ll...kkk. its fun as it should be....

now if ur in a contest all bets r off, its dog eat dog, as it should be, and i play/sing to win....so why am i always loseing? li need to play harder i guess...now what was the question?    

take care my friend