Karaoke Forums

As a mobile DJ for private parties for years, it wasn't often I'd get booked for events with less than 100 guests...simply because smaller parties wouldn't have the budget to hire a professional DJ company. Of course that landscape has changed with iPods, BitTorrent, laptops, etc. And to some extent KJs are suffering the same thing with bootlegged libraries.

But this curiosity is about getting excited about a small crowd. When I go out to other karaoke spots and often see the KJ have to face a small handful of people in the whole bar ... besides the paycheck what's the fun for the host?

Seriously, if the bar I'm in doesn't have a crowd - a REAL crowd - it would be hard as hell for me to get pumped about a bar gig. A private party would be different, of course since they usually pay 3-5 times as much as a karaoke bar. For that amount of money, I'll paint on a smile. (And most times because private parties get wilder than a public bar, it IS much more fun!)

But for those of you who are gigging in neighborhood watering holes for 20-30 people - maybe a number of them regulars - how do you get pumped about the show?

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[font=Lucida Console]DangerousKaraoke.com[/font]
[font=Lucida Console]"Sing for the day, sing for the moment, sing for the time of your life!"[/font]

I truly enjoy my smallest show more than any other.

In a smaller venue the non-karaoke people kind of get weeded out. Then, with the small size comes an intimate atmosphere where people become almost a karaoke family if you work it right.

When I walk in that door I get cheers, because they know the family is gonna have some FUN! The whole night is an ego boost.

These people will actually call in if they can't make it. By birthdays and the holidays are terrific there. They REMEMBER- I don't bring it up.

I feel more appreciated and maybe even needed there.



All in the mindset.

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

" Disc based and loving it..."

Ditto for me - I have a very small venue that is now 8 weeks old. They called me on referral from a friend. I had never approached this place because it was so small. Much to my surprise it has been the most enjoyable gig I've ever done. It is truly that "Cheers" atmosphere. Everybody seems to know everyone - at least after the first half hour. People share their tables. The manager is fabulous, the bartenders are really great women. I've done BIG shows for years and this is just like being able to go to Arizona in the winter for me! (I don't get to go - but I can imagine what a break from this cold and gray would be in about January...) I don't have to worry about people getting over-served or being a pest -- peer pressure is a wonderful thing.

Anyway, as soon as I see there are no parking spots around the place at all, I start to feel happy. Everyone says hi when we arrive. Everyone claps for everyone. The atmosphere is really amazing and if I could find 3 more gigs like this one, I'd be in karaoke heaven. Seriously. They SO appreciate our entertainment skills and how I do the show. Can't ask for more than that.

Well I can see two different scenarios from this question. The first, as answered by the last two posters is how do you play in a small venue. However, the other way I can see answering that is how do you play to a small audience.

In the first scenario, I agree with the previous two answers. In many cases a small venue can be a lot of fun for Karaoke. It's a more (for lack of a better term) "intimate" setting and you can often have more fun with the folks. I like gigs like that.

The other situation is where things start to suck. Playing to an almost empty venue is really tough. But then who said this job should be easy all the time. Talk about a challenge, try to stay upbeat and full of energy when there's only 8 people in the whole bar. I think we've all been there at some point.

One of my first gigs was at a bar where the owner had just inherited the place from his parents. Their regular clientele no longer came around because most of them were friends with his parents and didn't like the new direction he was taking the place. So he hired me to come in on Saturday nights. The first couple months I had some horribly small crowds, but over time built it up to a really nice following. The only way you can do that is to remain professional and do your job even when the crowd sucks. This situation is what separates the pros from the wannabe's in my mind.

I'm actually in this situation again. I'm working a place on Tuesday nights that is a new bar and Tuesdays are their worst days (which is why they brought me in). I've been doing the show for a little over 2 months now and have had some seriously small audiences. However, I just keep doing what I do and I'm starting to see the benefits. Regulars that swore off singing are starting to sing, new folks are showing up each week, and we're starting to see return karaoke customers.

I hope that answers your question.

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DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

My shows have always been on the small side..for me its this
#1 - I have to like the PLACE and the PEOPLE including the MGT
#2- The MONEY has to be DECENT

And from there its just a night out having fun, socializing, singing and getting paid ---(assuming the MGT is happy with the AMOUNT of people ) The more people that show up justs makes it MORE WORK

There's a huge difference between these two lines of work - DJ and KJ - when it comes to small crowds. Being a KJ is a much more interactive experience. When it's slow I can talk to the other singers more than just being an announcer and calling them up, relax the pace of the show, and actually sing myself some (Wow! What a concept!)

You can't have too many of them or you're out of work but it's nice. As a KJ, the nights I dread the most are the slammed ones. But wall to wall people is the dream of every DJ.

There's a comfort zone for me of 12-15 singers but I'd rather see it go under that than over.

Of course the bar sees things differently.

I started out a small one-Tuesday-a-month night just a little over a year ago. It started out small, and at one point I thought of canceling (this one is totally up to me) when I had a very slow night early with only me there.

Little by little, we started developing a *listening* audience. We had a few people who came in and stayed to listen to about three or four of us sing and joke around (two of the four were very good singers, then there is me, and one other not-so-good singer). After that stabilized for a couple of gigs, then we started getting singers later on. Last month we had 10, which for that room on a Tuesday is a *lot*.

It is a small room. A big night is 60 customers over the four-hour period. But little by little, it has become the biggest weeknight crowd they have ever had.

The hardest part is not getting discouraged. The gig will make it or not. But that won't be determined in the first couple of months, so Just don't feel like it has failed before it has.

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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.

As a singer it is totally boring and I wont sing.

As a host sometimes it is a good break and I have time to really listen and fine tune the system. I am still bored and cant do that gig for an extended period of time Usually I got somebody running the board and I'm at the bar socializing.

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Okay, yah, I've had "small" gigs where it took a while to build the crowd. It is VERY difficult to maintain a good attitude - especially if you aren't really acquainted with the owner/manager - that feeling that any night might be the last is not a nice one to live with. Open lines of communication with magmt and staff are important, of course.... The other thing is, Tuesday is the TOUGHEST night of the week....for years that's been the case in our area. Takes an amazing combination of things to make a Tuesday show work. Wednesday is next....

I agree that a Tuesday show is the toughest to get goiing and maintain, but in our are, it is followed by Sundays, and then Wednesdays. My Tuesday show seemed like it would fold, but the owner kept encouraging me. It finally became stable and now it's doing just fine. I do have an occasional night that is slow, but otherwise it's a nice, happy place.

When a show is working in the reverse, meaning that it used to be good, and is dying, like the one I have mentioned on another thread, then it becomes worrisome. If you are used to large crowds, and then you find yourself in the situation of a slowing show, it's time to evaluate where the issues lie. But above all, keep a good attitude and just have fun. Interact with the people who are there, encourage them to bring friends all the time and who knows where it will end.

My reply was based upon that comment. If it is a place with potential then my response would have been different.

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Depends on what you mean by "small"... to me, a rotation of between 6 -15 singers is "about right", while rotations of 20 or more, while fun, meant that a lot of folks will only get to sing once or twice the entire night depending on when they arrive.

I've had a blast with small rotations. On my Monday night gig the last half hour can get down to one other guy and me (a regular). While there may be 10 to 15 people in the bar, we are the only ones singing.

No problem, we pull out some serious material (I'll do styx - renegade or something else energetic and so will John with some Eagles). We get cheers, and the bar is pumped, and everyone is having a good time.

I've got a little bit of an edge... I have a serious entertainment backgroun having worked as a magician, and performed in the theatre, etc.

This is just the kind of thing that is great for a small crowd... when you normally wouldn't "show off" like this, you can "let loose" and get more intimate with the crowd. Singing with them, sometimes encourages them to get up there on their own.

My Monday gig has been steadily growing is singers... even though the bar itself is relatively small.

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Good music, good friends, howling good times!

A dj with a show of 100 or more is going to be "better" than a smaller show. You have more potential of having the critical number of people getting out and dancing etc to bring the energy.

A smaller group say 20 or so can be fun for dancing but it is hard to keep a constant high energy level there because most people will take breaks from the dancing, with a big crowd this is less apparent.

With karaoke on the other hand, even if only 1/3 of a crowd of 100 wishis to sing that is over 2 hours of song reqests. Result is a painfully long 2 hour wait, and it is hard to keep people that long. Most of your good singers really want to sing and that is why they are there. If they know that they will have to wait 2 or more hours they might go do something else.

For that reason the best karaoke crowds are in the range of 10-20 singers. Plus maybe an equal number of non-singer friends to dance and applaud. That means that the singers get to sing a song or more with a reasonable wait. Many singers may dislike a crowd much smaller than 10 because they do not have a crowd to give them applause (and karaoke is all about ego).

I sometimes get busy shows with rotations of up to 30-40 people long. Usually when that happens many of the best singers go elsewhere (they know when they can find a less busy night to sing). The result can be a lower quality of singers and drag down the enjoyment for the whole event and the crowd energy.

"Energy" in a small show is tricky. When we get a crowd, it takes care of itself and we just have to keep up. Not one of OUR common experiences yet but it has happened and it makes things seem so much easier. The mind moves more quickly, the humor flows, people are socializing and dancing and it's not all up to us.

With a small group, "energy" gets tricky. You can over do the high energy thing with a small group that might just want to sit around and be mellow. Or you can go with the low energy and make them happy but potentially lose anyone else who might venture in. I guess the only way to play it is be friendly and not let the stress of possibly "failing" show. Sometimes you can start mellow and jazz it up as things go on. Lots of playing by ear.

I live on the border of Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana.

The big energy-sapper in a small show in Ohio is the smoke break. There may actually be 25 people attending, but when 10 or more of them are outside smoking it makes for a pretty empty bar.

Over in Indiana or Kentucky, all the people stay inside because they can smoke there. The downside is the smoke of course. 8-\

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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.

This statement I completely disagree with. I can work a crowd of at least 20 into a dancing and singing frenzy... good times had by all. I don't see how it gets any "better" than that.




I agree 100%



Once again, a true statement. I think the most singers I've ever had at once was 35, and while it ran smoothly enough, an hour and 1/2 to 2 hour wait to sing is just too long, and the best singers will call it a night or go elsewhere.

This is one of the aspects of the show you really don't have too much control over. I try to keep it light with witty comments at the right time, plastic guitar solos and general sillyness. While I'm certainly out of the rotation at this point, I'm sure to end up in a duet or something during a rotation of this size... and if asked I will generlly try to stear the duet to something interesting like grease or something.

I frequently get asked to do "I got you babe", and I have a pretty funny schtick for that, which I thought a lot of people had seen before... but apparently not, becuase I usually have folks in tears by the end of it.

Take your shoes off and "kneel" in them.... giving you a "Dorf" look... I also have a bowl cut wig to put on and some beads to complete the "Sonny" look. Its very cool when the girl gets into it and starts making short jokes.

Depending on how tall your partner is, this can get very funny. I remember one night this one girl was rather tall, after the song ended and while I was still on my knees she moved infront of me to give me a hug and kinda pushed my head into her... her comment into the mic: "Finally, a man of the perfect height!"

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Good music, good friends, howling good times!