Karaoke Forums

I have been doing karaoke for almost 10 years and for the past two months one of the best singers I have ever had the pleasure of listening to has been coming to my Friday night shows. But, not only is this guy a very good singer, I could not ask for a better karaoke patron. He is respectful to all in the bar, he tips the bartenders well and he claps and shows support for other singers even though they do not afford him the same courtesy, which, brings me to the main point of this topic. No matter what this guy sings, afterwards you can hear crickets chirping because nobody ever claps for the guy. It makes me very angry because I don't think anybody who gathers up the courage to get up there and sing in front of strangers deserves to be treated as though they don't exist. Now he comes to my shows, but won't sing anymore because he is hurt and embarrassed and he shouldn't be because he can sing circles around all the others that come to my shows. Oh and by the way, I should establish that silence after a performance is not a common thing at my shows. It seems to be just for him.  Any opinions or words of encouragement I can give him?

Hi!
 Could it be song selection?  This seems to occasionally be a problem for me...  Except when I try a new song and fail miserably...    :(

 Have you tried asking some of the other patrons what they think the problem is?  (Since they are the ones not clapping...)  Might provide some insight or alert them to the fact that perhaps they are accidently being jerks.    

 OTOH, could be just jealousy!

--Tad

Nah. I'd have to disagree with the problem being song selection. He sings a lot of stuff by The Eagles and a lot of country, which is what most people sing.  Once in a while he might break out Ace or Walter Egan or Alan Parsons Project just to not get stagnate. One thing that I forgot to mention was that on more than one occassion I've had a patron come up to me and tell me what a great singer "that guy" is. Why they don't feel compelled to tell him is beyond me.

I find applause comes and goes sometimes.  I'll make jokes about it.  Tell the audience to put their nose pickers and butt wipers together.  And if they don't mention they must be too busy picking their noses or wiping their butts.  I'll tell singers that if they don't clap, they don't sing (joking of course).  

I have the luxury of having a very casual crowd.  Prudes and purists need not apply.  :)  

The KJ has as much responsibility for how the crowd reacts as the crowd does to react.  Working the crowd is a skill and one that can make or break a show.  Gotta keep 'em engaged.

Then again, maybe the crowd is just a bunch of prudes and purists.  I notice they're pretty fickle and often selfish.

That is unfortunate.  I am curious what he is singing also.  Is it similar to what others are singing?   Karaoke can be kind of strange, because you can get small groups of friends that clap for the people in their group, but not for people outside the group.  So there might be alot of applause at a show but that applause is all within groups, directed at people they know.   In the meantime, the lone person at the bar who decides to sing and isn't really part of a group doesn't get any applause at all.  So sometimes more significance is attached to karaoke applause than it's really worth....but it's still nice to have!!  I know a KJ that always adds in some canned applause after every singer and gives them a cheer or compliment himself--that way at least everyone gets some baseline noise and good vibes!

Either way it would be sad to lose this guy seeing as he obviously likes singing and is an enthusiastic participant and you like the singing as well.  He definitely needs some kind of encouragement.  

Finally, just because you get no applause doesn't mean people don't appreciate your singing.  I'm guessing this person is having an affect on the crowd out there and they probably like him more than their response might indicate.  

I sang a fairly obscure pop song once at a bar and got no response from the tables, but this one guy sitting at the bar that wasn't even participating in the karaoke loved the song, hadn't heard it for several years, and thanked me for singing it.   Having that kind of appreciation from one person makes it really worthwhile.

Drizzle's got it right. As a host it's good to lead the applause and possibly be the only one applauding.

It sounds like since he "can sing circles" around everybody else perhaps it's jealousy on the part of the so-so singers.- or maybe he's carrying himself (dispostion) on-stage as a little stuck up...??

Maybe if you can introduce him to a few singers throughout the night then maybe through association they would start applauding for him. People support others they're familiar with- even if because they happen to be sitting next to them.  Especially if they have a name or know that person knows their name.

I have witnessed singers so good that the audience was spell-bound and didn't believe they were actually singing the song. (did she lip-sync that?). As well as what was mentioned before- they carried themselves like divas/devoes? which was a crowd turn-off.  Keep us updated!   J.R.

I've been known to gently scold the room if they don't show appreciation for an exceptional performance. "C'mon you guys that was great! Give it up!" I'll say with a smile and clap. That usually does it. But that's a tactic I sparingly use so it stays effective.

Someone with an excellent voice will sing their heart out on a ballad or easy listening song to little applause. And then someone who can't carry a tune will do "Milkshake" and the place will come unglued. That's karaoke for you. At least in my room.

Gotta go to work.

many times, rooms can get quiet because the singer IS so darned good... But that's the Jocks' responsibility to remind folks, "HOLY COW! Now THAT's some good stuff... give it up for m'man!" or get funny like "Ringer alert! RINGER ALERT!" or make some comments about you thinking that there's a recording scout in the room cause this guy and others are just showstoppers!

Jealousy can rear it's ugly head so easily too... I have also scolded the room before with "you know, that man applauds for you guys, and I hate to say it, he's applauded for some of you that aren't as good as he was... SHEESH!"

I'm also one that will applaud VERY loudly for some folks that don't get their fair due! That as a singer as well as a kj!

Man, am I glad that I have the regulars that I do.  I tell them frequently that they are great, especially clapping for people that they don't know.  I have one regular that is in her late 50's,  had two knee replacements and two weeks later she was out singing.  She goes crazy for every singer that gets up there, no matter if they sing rap, metal, country, etc.  She also doesn't care if they destroy a song or sing extremely well.  People follow up with their appreciation of the singer, based on her reaction.

I am in agreement with those who put the responsibility on the KJ's shoulders.  It is the KJ's responsibility to get the deserved applause for each singer.  And I try to get applause for both the arriving and departing singer, in spite of everything else I am "juggling".   It's just is too important to ignore.

To facilitate this task, I have a two collections of "stickies" on my laptop's desktop.  One is a collection of "intros" for each singer; the other, a collection of "outros".  I also have a big plastic "clapper" hand that can be heard throughout the venue and lights up when used.

As soon as I sense "a dead response" for someone's effort(s), I grab that clapper and start screaming about "making some noise for a great effort" (or whatever comment is next in line on my sticky list). And while I might let folks get away with tepid response for a singer coming up to the stage, I will not tolerate ANYONE'S effort going unrecognized.

And even if the singer only hears my praise and my appreciation, that matters and will have a positive impact.  It will also make it clearer to the audience how they should be behaving.

And I do appreciate everyone who comes to my show and, particularly, everyone who gets up (puts themself on the line) and sings.
 
In my life, I've learned a very important lesson.  People want to be appreciated.  That's why we say "thank you".   And applause for a performer is his thanks.  I've observed the world of karaoke too long to ignore this reality.  The shows where the KJ calls up one singer after another, with little chit-chat, with little charisma, with little recognition of the efforts of the singers, are not among the most popular shows in my neck of the woods.

I have seen this one time...at a show at a local casino...the Karaoke stops at 10pm then is followed by a live band...about 15minutes b4 the karaoke is over a great looking girl...dressed to kill gets up and sings a song...I figured it out along with I think everyone else..this girl is the front for the live band coming up in 15minutes. She was a pro..could move and sing great..made the rest of us feel like chumps..she got ZERO applause..and she deserved no appluase..she was rubbing it in our face (IMHO)..and why should she steal one of our lasts singing slots when she gets to sing for the next hour or 2...except perhaps to plug their own show.

In my opinion half of getting a good round of applause is the song. Crowd-pleasing songs get lots of applause. Songs with long codas or fadeouts are hard to get applause for. People like the familiar, and if you make the right choice of song you are going to strike a chord.

I have noticed that often the karaoke host doesn't get applause when they sing a plain old song. I think people think "he is a pro, he doesn't need false applause".

I have one place where I go and people applaud for everyone except the host and me. Yet the lady who does the same 6 songs week after week sings yet another off-key rendition of "Coal Miner's Daughter", and she gets applause. It is basically mercy applause.

I now usually gauge how well I am doing by how many heads turn and watch me when I sing. The people who know me expect me to sing fairly well and don't pay all that much attention to me. When they do, I know it is a good song choice or that I am doing particularly well.

for someone who sings so well we have never seen you sub on ss  :whistle:

_________________
"Be who you are and say what you feel... Because those that matter... Don't mind...And those that mind... Don't matter."

It's one or more of the following:
1.Jealousy-I've seen it and experienced it. sometimes people are so jealous of a good singer they think the guy or gal is making them look/sound bad and they won't give the good singer any credit.

2. Looks-Sometimes the way the singer looks can affect how the crowd responds to them. It's just the way it is. It's not very nice, it's just the way some people are. Entertaining is a lot more than singing. Sometimes that special something just isn't there. Some people who don't sing that well, maybe just decent,  have "something" that crowds like.

3. The venue-Sometimes the venue/crowd is just not friendly. Some places I go to the people are lovely, friendly, welcoming and nice. Some places just have a more impersonal feeling and it's harder to be cozy. Larger venues with lots of people can have this feel. Smaller, more intimate venues generally can be friendlier if they aren't dominated by a few people that want to be the star and who don't welcome others. It's petty.

4.Bad manners-As strange as it may sound you may need to teach these people some manners. You can do it with the crowd when other singers sing and it should carry over to the singer who is not getting recognition. Repitition and encouragement is key. Enthusiasm, enthusiasm, enthusiasm-it's contaigious. Whip the crowd into a frenzy of appreciation and do it all the time, people will get into it more and have a better time.

IMO, it's the job of the host to create the atmosphere wherever they host. Lots of ways to encourage positive interaction among the crowd and among the singers and in some places you need to work extra hard to get people to loosen up and show each other some love. It's up to you to turn this crowd and get them to give this guy a fair shake if the crowd isn't doing it. If he is as good as you describe he deserves to be recognized for his vocal skills.

Didn't realized SW sings in your club

 ROFL  :rofl4:  LMAO  LMAO  LMAO

Now that's funny..  :hug:

Actually i know exactly how he feels.    I hear total silence after many of my songs.

Ohh that's the KJ singing.     Crickets...  

It gets a little frustrating but after coming to expect it after all these years when they do clap it sounds nice.

CAN YOU IMAGINE hearing nothing but crickets chirping after singing 8 songs in a row????? Oh WAIT a minute sw.....you must!!! (referring to another thread folks)

My first song is met with a minor applause sometimes, so i say "thank you" and tell them it's my best impersonation of...singers name.

"The checks' in the mail" for the ones that do applaud.

I think Mckyj57 made a lot of valid points. Well said and true for me as well!  J.R.

Yes i am the singer he started this thread about.  :dancin:

I'm not that great. I didn't sing a note beyond Christmas Carols until 3 years ago, but I am getting better. I would say I am better than most in my area, but we are rural and don't have that many people.

I don't have the patience to record well, but you can see my sing-alongs at Singsnap under the same user name.