Karaoke Forums

Thank you Brian! You hit the nail on the head. There's no point in discussing it any further with people that just don't get it.

It's not about whether you're CD based or computer based (which most of us are), it's not about the song selection or the price of a subscription to the Cloud, it's about the negative impact this can have on KJ's who have invested thousand's of dollars on legal libraries of karaoke music.

It's about how this can force you to lower your price even further if you want to stay competitive. It's about trying to find a venue to hire you and pay you $150 a night when for $99 they can do karaoke 7 nights a week if they want costing them less then the price that you want for just one night.

People who don't get it must be morons. So, now I'm done. I've said all I have to say about the Cloud and how it can hurt you. If you value your job as a KJ, you'll look the other way.

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Electro-Voice Evolve 50... Taking Sound To The Next Level.

I feel that "Whatever" is just another way of saying "I don't agree with what you have to say, and I'm not listening to you anymore."

Ditto!

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Electro-Voice Evolve 50... Taking Sound To The Next Level.

I use "whatever" on occasion, too. For me it means that what you said has no relevance to me and to my point.

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I am the ONLY SANE 1 HERE

I understand your crusade about price. You believe that cheap karaoke music will drive us out of business. Got it.

I disagree with you demonizing the "cloud" concept itself. Whether it's a giant pile of discs for $99 or a cloud based server of songs for $99 makes NO difference, it's still a pile of songs for $99. How it is delivered is ancillary.



You obviously believe that this one new player in the business is going to ruin us all because of cheaper music.

Did complete 68 disc SGB sets on eBay for $59 ruin us? No.

Did cheaper GEM sets ruin us? No.

Have the automated karaoke jukeboxes ruined us? No.

You believe it is 100% about price. I do not. This business is relationship based. You make friends with the owner & staff. You make friends with your patrons. They come because they like you among other things. At least that's how I run my business. You still need a decent sound system. You still need an entertaining host. You still need personality. Now if you HAVE no personality...well.

If a host is a boring "name caller" who sits on his a$$ all night and acts rudely to people, then you are correct. He will get screwed out of the business. The herd will continue to be culled as it has in the past and the strong will survive. I am not afraid and say "bring it on".

If you are terrified of the cloud, don't blame new technology for your downfall. Blame yourself. Are you as good as you can be? Do you work the mic? Do you work the crowd? Do you promote your business? Have you made good relationships with the staff & owner? Are you part of their "family"? Do you have a decent sound system? Do you have a website? When did you update it last? Does it look professional or like a 9 year old made it with basic templates?



Nice. I say people who quake in fear over new technology are morons.



Yeah, whats this the third time you've been "done? I'll believe it when I see it.

Just to set the record straight:

1. It's NOT about price. Price has nothing to do with it. Whether a subscription to the cloud is $9.95 or $99.95 per month, it is still damaging.

2. Yes I work the crowd. I have a good sound system. I do like people and my goal is to insure that everyone that comes to my show has a great time. I usually succeed.

3. I believe I have a good personality. I've been complimented many times. At my main venue, before I took over, people would be gone by 9:30 or 10 O'Clock. Now, I keep them rockin' the place until 12 or 1.

4. I have promotional materials including brochures, professionally printed Songbook binders (the binder itself), banners, posters, you name it, I've got it. All professionally done. I use a kiosk along with song books. And people can use there smart phones or tablets also to submit song requests.

5. I do try to run a professional show at which I'm most successful.

6. Yes, I do have a website although it does need to be updated. www.firelightkaraoke.com

The point is, no matter how successful you are, the Cloud still poses a threat. I hope you can at least acknowledge that.

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Electro-Voice Evolve 50... Taking Sound To The Next Level.

About as much threat as the Jukebox did to disc jockeys.

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

...and yet 93% gure....

Though not a threat to me, or to any NON-LIBRARY DEPENDANT KJ, it is a threat to virually ANY KJ that said " I have to have such and such brand in my library or my show will suffer." Why? These are the KJ's who never learned the most important skills of the profession, and depend on their library to be successful, instead of their skills.

THESE KJs will suffer when all have easy access to the same library that they do.

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

" Disc based and loving it..."

Huh? You keep talking about bar owners having access to music cheap being detrimental. If it's NOT about price, then what IS it about?! The fact that there are no discs and the music is stored somewhere else? How does the method by which the music makes it to your speakers have anything to do with it?



BTW, I wasn't speaking of you specifically regarding the above. Sorry if you took it that way. I believe you do have a good personality and a decent website. I was speaking to hosts in general.



Yes it is a threat. Just as Sweet Georgia Brown sets for $59 are a threat. I do not believe they are the apocalyptic KJ killer you do however, just another music option.



Nice thinly veiled slam Joe, but liking a certain brand or wanting the best quality song reproductions has nothing to do with ones ability to work the crowd, have a professional website and make the relationships necessary to run a quality & profitable business. They are not mutually exclusive. "Nice Try" though.

No, I don't believe they are the popcalyptic KJ killer that you implied. I like you Bazza. I only wish you could see the whole picture and get what I've been saying. Even if you can't, I'm not going to label you an idiot or a moron. You are OK in my book.

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Electro-Voice Evolve 50... Taking Sound To The Next Level.

I appreciate all the unsolicited personal definitions of "whatever" in this context. The differences in those definitions and their ambiguity and lack of clarity cause one to think, why not try an approach, like, I don't know...maybe, actually saying what one thinks???

whatever

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Electro-Voice Evolve 50... Taking Sound To The Next Level.

Not veiled at all, but not directed where you think it was. It WAS a slam, but directed at any KJ that is library dependent on ANY brand, or on simple quantity of tracks.

In other words, KJs who have entered the business without bothering to learn the neccesary skills to do so. KJs who spend their time advertising their 100K track libraries, or ANY specific or regional "favorite " brand rather than learning how to mix sound PROPERLY, answer questions intelligently, develop their mic work and diction, make sure that their interpersonal skills are better than ANY competition, and the many, many other skills that make a good Karaoke Host.

KJs that have come into the business without skills will no longer have a large or "favorite" library to use as a selling point. There would be no reason for any venue to hire them over any other KJ of similar quality.

In other words, we lose a lot of "Crappy-Oke"

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

" Disc based and loving it..."

i agree with your assessment here.



this has yet to be seen, depends on how many manus get on board.



same as they do now...........bar owners are cheap asses.



i would like to see that, but i don't see this doing anything but adding to the crappyoke by making it easier for any untalented schmuck to become a host for the cheap (@$%&#!) bar owners, thinning the crowd more for the nicer venues that can pay. even though it is crappyoke, patrons still go to those shows for one thing, to sing. they always come back and say how awful it was, but they get to sing 6 songs in 4 hours instead of 2 songs in 5 hours. whether they like the other show or not, many will go just for more time actually singing, so the more options they have.....

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

Way too expensive......