Karaoke Forums

OK I will try to explain. I have been working for this bar owner for over 8 months...3 years in the bar itself. He has been a bit of a pain since the beginig, but I put up with it cause he also hires me every weekend. I almost never charge him full price. Mostly because he hires me every weekend sometimes Friday and Saturday, its close to home, I can leave my stuff there etc. So we were having a great night, the bar was full. Our deal with new Years is I work the 9-2 for $200, and if there are still people then talk about another $50 for another hour. There was still over 70 people in the bar at 2 drinking, having fun, singing and most weren't going anywhere. As a mater of a fact some had just goten there cause they know I am always there til 4 am . Well I went and asked said bar owner if I should shut down and he saud yes. Well I was a bit shocked, but OK I made my Anouncement, my people started passing the hat and I said no. There were plenty of people there for him to pay for me and I din't think he deserved a free ride from my singers. While packing up with "helpers"
my mixer was put on a nar stool and knocked to the ground.
NOw this is a small bar in a small town and not ALOT of money is made. If there had been 20 or 30 people there, I would have passed the hat and played for whatever i got. I am not unreasonable. Plus he  has been complaining about biot having enough money after going out and buying a new snowmobile . I don't know, I may have overreacted a tad, but mostly it was our history . So the mixer is trashed, bought a new one today $800 and won't be able yo play there no more, he was booked for most of January. But I will go out and pound the pavement and find some new bars. I will just miss my people there.

OK thats about it .

_________________
It's always time to sing!

So sorry to hear that. Keeping equipment safe is always such a major thing. Someone on here mentioned something about making a deal with the bar that if a mic gets broken, the bar pays - too bad we can't institute that type of agreement for all equipment. I did have a tv monitor broken once but the place replaced it with actually a better one. I've been fortunate. I can't even imagine watching any piece of my equipment drop to the floor! I worry about my Mackie powered speakers up on stands so I always keep them as close as possible to me.  One is up on the sub so it's safe, but the other one is just on a stand...

I am in agreement with you about the whole pass the hat thing. Most bar owners squeeze a nickel 10 ways, tell you they didn't do as well as they thought, then brag to another owner about how busy they were, and how big the crowd was.

Best of luck on the pavement...you'll find something...maybe more reliable!
K

Thankyou Karen.I will find more work, and wait for said bar owner to go under. I was actually just holiding out for that anyways . You hear about everything in a small town and it appears he isn't bothering to pay most of his bills. Hopefully whoever takes over will be better .There are plenty of bars I have turned down cause I was booked, I will stop by them first.
Thanx again...Joyce

_________________
It's always time to sing!

Sorry to hear about your loss on the equipment, and also the gig.

Before I got started in the Karaoke Business I did a few stand in gigs for a local KJ to learn the ropes a bit. One of the things that he said really stuck with me over the years and that was Never....and I repeat....Never! let a customer help you setup or tear down the equipment. Many are trying to be helpful but have no idea how to handle this type of equipment and then add to it that when they are full of booze common sense seems to go away as well.

I did not remember this little piece of advice when I went into business for myself and had a couple of bad experiences and had equipment damaged. From that day forward I politely turn down offers for assistance. I just tell them " I have a system/method of breaking down and packing up that actually allows me to do it faster by myself but thanks for the offer I really appreciate it. (add a smile then go on tearing down) most will understand and others will insist that they help (BIG RED FLAG) these are the ones you have to be firm with them as they are usually the most intoxicated.

I had a TV replaced by the bar that was knocked off by a daytime customer that was drunk and fell into it and had a mixer replaced as a result of a leaky ceiling.  

I have an understanding with each bar in writing that if my equipment gets damaged (Speakers, Stands, TV, or Amp Mixer) the bar is responsible for the loss and recovery of damages from the person or persons who did the damage. As for Microphones I consider that my problem, unless it is intentional damage and then the bar is responsible for dealing with the situation.

This is one of those things that needs to be in place before you start the gig. Trying to reach this sort of agreement afterwards is very difficult.

I'm sure you will find a new gig as Karaoke is extremely popular.

_________________
FlipSide Karaoke
Scott

Flipper is absolutely correct.  On your damaged mixer, unfortunately you screwed up, but an expensive lesson has been learned.  Nothing wrong in training a helper to properly assist (as long as they're not drinking), so things like putting equipment on a bar stool doesn't happen.  The only help I get is a staff member assist be in putting the speakers (80 lbs each) on and off the stands.

_________________
You can be strange but not a stranger

Sometimes we all have to learn the hard way. I have learned so many roads NOT to go down in this business! Many have been from learning the hard way

_________________
FlipSide Karaoke
Scott

Yea we generally do not allow people to help, with the exception of a friend who sometimes runs my shows when I can not.unfortunately my friends saw I was upset and just started tearing down . I am prety sure noe of them will ever touch my equipment again. I went from being upset to crying the minute it hit the floor . i knew it was trashed. Funy how the story is different from the bar owner . Remember this is smallville here folks. You sneeze someone in the next bar says bles you . Said bar owners story is we had 15 people in the bar so he shut me down, everyone cheered cause they wanted me gone, and when they tried to pass the hat he made them give the money back. On the plus sidde the story is so false no one would believe him, he can't even remember who was there cause one of the people he said that too was siting at the bar.
Actually my bigest lesson here is to not get to "friendly " with the bar owner and if you feel like you are being taken advantage of you probobly are!
Joyce

_________________
It's always time to sing!

Somehow bar owners stories always get way off base. That is so unfair that he resorted to doing that. If it's a small town and you have built a reputation there, then you have nothing to worry about.

_________________
FlipSide Karaoke
Scott

we played at a bar/restaurant. for what i've seen here NYE has been ok for most people, and for us it was ok too. it was our first NYE since we've only started 1 month ago.

the venue had 115 people, mostly above 45. it wan't a usual karaoke show, as we started to play some live musics from 10pm to 10h45pm (while people were finishing dinner), made a short rotation between 10h45pm and 11h30pm, then we did DJ's from 11h30pm to 12h30pm with some popular portuguese dance music. As we started the karaoke rotation's once again (near 12h30pm) a lady complained to us just after the 1st singer because the music was a slow music and she said that if things were that way people would start to leave... i told her that karaoke was included in our agreement with the patron, and we couldn't force people to sing only "rythmed" songs. then she went talk to the patron, and he came ask us if we could sing some dancing musics and leave karaoke aside... we sang the rest of the night (to 3hpm), but it was ok, everybody danced and had a lot of fun!

well, we earned our money and gained experience...

Ours was cold ! But..a great little country gathering, about 50 people. Out in the middle of 40 acres. A great place to get loud & crazy ! We were set up on the mans porch & there was a bonfire & Christmas lights all over the trees & awesome food ! ! Im on a diet & can only have alot of high protein stuff so I was lovin it when they offered us the pork loin off the grill & blackeyed peas & greens & raw veggies..man I was lovin it ! !
 Wasnt alot of singers but they enjoyed the dj music alot. An older crowd so liked alot of the same music I like so that made me have more fun I guess. Im just thankful we had a gig for NYE ! We got it like 2 days before.  Sure helps payin for the big Christmas we had !

_________________
Kelley
Star Sounds Karaoke & Mobile Recording Studio


[shadow=black][scroll]You have to respect your audience. Without them, you're essentially standing alone, singing to yourself....KD Lang[/scroll][/shadow]

I turned down doing a big dance and show with my band because I thought that my wife and I would be able to spend our first New Years Eve together as a married couple.  Her boss changed her schedule and she wound up having to work.  I decided that I was not going to let the night go without a little romance so I went to the store and bought a bottle of that white grape juice in a champane bottle, a dozen roses, and took a cd I recorded of Keeper of the Stars that I had recorded for her the night I proposed to her. I drove the 30 miles to her work place and reached her business about the time she walked out the door toward her car.  She found me standing in the parking lot by my truck and her car playing some music, two glasses poured, and I danced with her under the moonlight until midnight to Keeper of the Stars. Then I kissed my beautiful wife under some  big 'ol Texas stars and then I followed her home where we spent a couple of hours with our kids playing games and having some fun. The night was not all bad! --Mike

Wow ML...what a great New Years story!  You are such a romantic

_________________
FlipSide Karaoke
Scott

New Years was Nice I got to stay home with the Kids and Wife

_________________
Karaoke Kyle
Good Time Karaoke
1-800-200-9935
Watch the Karaoke King Show Live Thursdays 9pm
http://www.karaokeinbakersfield.com
[/url]

exploded it was great and i only did a 5 hour for £450 gbp

It was unbelieveable!!!  I kept getting eveyrone absolutely crazy and kept them informed of the times and hours till midnight!  Since everyone was blowin' their horns anyways, I took the time to say "alright let's take a practice run on the loudness level for midnight" so if they weren't loud enough, I would make them do it again.......sooo much fun!  In fact did both the Cha Cha slide and the YMCA in between singers and everyone was happy!!!  Love the New Year's!!!!  Here's a pic of the YMCA part of the crazy night!!!  Hope you all also had a wonderful New Year's and a crazy party night!!!

_________________