Karaoke Forums

I take my requests as I get them and place them at the bottom of the rotation, always will fall before the marker singer(usually me). I have been to shows where after the first rotation where the host put new old, once he got into a second rotation but because everyone sees the rotation on screen with Compuhost, I can't get away with doing it, although I could if I wanted to. I don't like the idea of two fers because what do you do to be fair to the singer who only sings one song all night. I wonder if I could get away wioth two fers if the second song is a random pick like kamakazi karaoke?

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The Line Array Experiment is over. Nothing to see here. Move along.

yeah, I do to!

One of the worst ran shows I ever saw was back here, and it was amazing the audience would put up with it. Whiteboard list, so people knew where they were. No problem there. Then the host would call the next singer, walk over to the whiteboard and get the request number (disc and track) and THEN load the disc up. It always took two or more minutes.

In the meantime, he'd have serious filler music playing.

I'm like, "LOOK up the NEXT singer WHILE the current one is singing, you dork!"

Despite our differences in philosophy, I don't think anybody disagrees with this. What makes each show unique is up to the hosts. But if it's not a faster ran show, I'm not going to revisit. Just because it's a place that serves alcohol doesn't mean everyone there is getting inhebriated. Many karaoke singers take it QUITE seriously!

I agree with your philosophies I've read so far. I'm sure I'd like your show.

One of the best KJ I know, had her show shut down, because she got too many that took themselves too serious, aka, they didn't buy drinks. If your customers don't buy drinks, you are in trouble.

Serious Singers... lighten up, have fun.

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Haven't you ever heard of "it takes all kinds"? Shows with no singers don't succeed either. And sober singers show up week in, week out.

The dynamics of karaoke have as much to do with stability as anything. If you lose your singers, the non-singers will show up and say "nothing happening here, I'll go down the street". This is why the sing one, play one show doesn't seem to survive here. The singers hate that, they leave, and soon the non-singers leave too.

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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.

It's the same here mckyj.
They want a karaoke show, not a karaoke mixed with dj music show. I run a fast paced show as well and generally don't have time to play filler music as my singers are ready to go when the previous singer is done. They're chomping at the bit, so to speak.
I have a fair number of non singers that come out just to hear and watch the singers. They may never sing a song in their life, but they are as much a part of karaoke night as the singers.
If there's no singing happening, they move on.

Point well taken.

BTW, the quotes inside of quotes are annoying.
Yes, I can be a whiner too.

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Well this is how I do it...

I get a sheet of paper and write down the names of my singers in the order they ask to sing. They get to sing one song each and the rotation starts over. I use the sing one bring one rule. If the rotation is really long and they sign up when I'm at the beginning of the rotation, I may make an adjustment as needed, so they don't have to wait hours to sing, but I try to keep the rotation in the order they sign up when at all possible.

Duets are where it gets tricky to me. Technically it counts as one turn each, but it depends on the situation. Sometimes a stong singer is asked to help out a newbie or unconfident singer, so in that case I will count it as the newbie's turn.

One thing I have learned is there is no way to please everyone, but I do my best to run as fair of a show as possible.

if we don't do that sometimes, with three or four conversations going on in a regular thread, sometimes when you're replying, nobody knows to WHOM you're speaking.

Yes, the popping the new singers in thing is a good variation. I can dig that.

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See/hear the serial version of Michael's karaoke novel, "Outro," at outronovel.blogspot.com

Or about WHAT!

Point well taken...OK, I'll stop whining.

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Just curious...the 'sing one, bring one'...you are saying that when a singer is finished with their song, they bring you another slip and that slip gets put at the end of the rotation? Depending on how long your rotation is, they could be singing again in a few songs or not sing again for a very long time?

Not sure anyone is interested in another idea here....there are sooo many!! But, my slips have four lines on them. 'Steve' can fill out a slip at the beginning of the night with four songs...his slip stays in the same spot in the rotation until he has sung all those songs and I have passed him once without him bringing me a new slip (at that point I throw his slip out). Rarely is there time for any one singer to sing four songs in a night.
So, at the beginning of the night I put all slips in a stack (1st ones at the top of course) until I get 15 slips. Once I get 15 slips, any new slips go upside down on the stack of singers who have sung.
Example:
Josh (#12) just sang and his slip has been turned upside down in the 'just sang' pile.
Mary is singing in the 13th spot.
Tim is #14.
Nancy is #15...after she sings I turn the 'just sang' pile over and start with #1

Joe (a new singer) hands me his slip- this slip goes upside down on the 'just sang' pile making his spot just before Mary once I get to the bottom of the original 15. So where Mary was #13, now Joe is #13 just after Josh. So Joe will sing after Josh and before Mary on the next round. This way Joe doesn't see Mary sing again before he gets to sing...and comes up to me and says "This girls' sung twice since I signed up, when do I get to sing?" Usually this question will entail me to search through the list to find Joe's slip only to tell him he is next...wasting time! Mary may come to me and say "I follow Josh, how come Joe is singing before me?" This question takes no time to answer because I can just tell her Joe is a new singer who signed up while she was singing her last song.

Never does a person wait less than 15 songs to sing...gosh, unless it's a horrible slow night and I don't have 15 singers to begin with!

Granted, the rotation gets long by the end of the night, but I've found with this method...the people who got there early have a better chance of singing more than once and the people who get there late wait the same amount of time as every other singer. No favorites, no complaints! *other than the ones that will complain no matter what you do*

New people get 'shuffled' into the rotation in a fair manner.

I cut off my rotation about 45 minutes to quitting time (and yes, some people don't get to sing...not my fault). The places where I work are fairly busy so at 12:00-12:30 I tell all new singers that I don't guarantee that they'll get to sing, but that I'll do my best.

This method seems to work pretty well. The regulars know what to expect and the new ones learn quickly. Being fair to all is the most important...even to those anal ones that think EVERYONE wants to hear them sing...and those that say they'll "really get this place movin' if you let me sing next" (these ppl are usually horrible singers ! )

I would go to lisah's show at every turn. That is the fairest kind of rotation in my opinion.

I believe that Lisah has answered this "age old" question to my satisfaction and I will adopt her method specifically as she described it.

Now only does it seem inherently fair to me, but anyone asking the most direct questions about the rotation, as Lisah suggested, would have a hard time denying the correctness of it.

Bravo!

Another question I no longer have to grapple with thanks to the expertise that can be found on this forum

Gosh...thanks you guys!

Yeah, but that dreaded dance set at 11 O'clock just chased me out the door for good. Sorry. ;c(

Lol Sorry Bruce...I only do it for the bars where the customers request it. Actually I am speaking of one place in particular...I get a fairly large group of people that come in at about 10 o'clock, they dance to the karaoke but then want to hear 3 or 4 of the popular club songs. And like I said...by then I need to take the short break to the rest room!! This place (a hotel) has their restrooms through the lobby down a long hall almost to their banquet rooms. One karaoke song is not long enough for the trip...unless it's American Pie...then I have use the rest room for more than the usual...if you know what I mean!! Am soooo sick of that song!!

The two other venues I do don't get a dance set because...one doesn't have a dance floor and the other is older folks that don't want to dance.

I do DJ weekends at this Hotel also...so I like to keep 'em all happy!

I'm 3,000 miles away anyway, so it doesn't really matter. I'm impressed with how well trained your sytem is that you can go to the bathroom at the same time every night. I just think that it would be just as easy to train one of your regulars how to fade out one singer and start the next song for the next singer for those emergency trips to the ladies room. I'll change my mind about dance sets when the local Club DJ lets me sing for 15 miuntes in the middle of his Saturday Night Fever set.

If I was in the mood to dance, I wouldn't go searching for a karaoke bar to do it in.

I also wouldn't go to a Mexican Restarant and order fettucini Alfredo.

To start I use the simple first submitted first to sing meathod to start.

As the rotation gets longer, I use something similiar to Susan, but with a mod based on a simple constant. Some singers don't submit a song for EVERY rotation, and some singers sing one song and leave.

So what I do is slip new singers in these "empty slots". This is very fair as those that have been there all night don't get bumped because they have to wait for the newbies to filter through. I have 20-25 singers a night, and I have found this gets everyone in. Let me also add that I use a computer to do my rotation. The computer keeps track of: Time the song slip was submitted, the last performence, and WHEN the performer can expect to come up again. New singers appear in RED type.

Using this information, I slip newbies in where appropriate.

I won't slip a newbie in next no matter how sexy and well proportioned the blond is... no matter how cutely she bats her eyes and says, "Pleeeesse!"

I tried using the multi song submission slip myself for awile. While it is a good idea, getting the singers to use is antoher thing entirely. The problem I had was that singer would still just submit one song a time. Which is a waste considering the multi-song slips are bigger, and use more paper.

In general, once the first song is submitted, the singer can just TELL me what song they want next. I use a computer, so it super fast that way.

Part of the KJ's function is handle this as fair as possible, keep everyone happy, and keep the rotation moving smoothly. There is no hard and set rule on rotation, other than that.

That may be correct to some degree, but let me also add that it is good to get the folks off their feet every now again. There are non-singers at the bar too, buying drinks, and you want them to come back. If they can watch some good karaoke performances and dance too, so much the better.

I do a "cupid shuffle" (sometime Twice a night), and/ or a booti call at the top of the rotation. Not every time, but about every other time. I have about 3 - 4 rotations a night with 20-25 singers.

This is a big hit with EVERYONE! I karaoke 4 times a week, and it works in every bar. Trust me, get the blood pumping and dancing is a good time.

Let me also add that you have to know how to do the dance and get out there and do it. I put the wireless in my pocket so I can beg/ bully folks to coming up to dance. "Hey, don't leave me up here by myself. You folks have been drinking all night, get up here an move around!" Etc.

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Good music, good friends, howling good times!