Hey Host! Whose show is this, anyway?

By Karen Knapp

Seriously! As a host, isn’t it a recurring thought in your mind that it is “YOUR” show? You’ve probably referred to it as “MY SHOW” more times than you’d care to admit. After all, you went and found the hosting establishment, didn’t you? You run it, you provide the equipment (if it is your own), you make sure everything works right. You have to set aside time from your life to come and host (yeah, we miss a lot of concerts and special shows because we work nights) - and so sorry if you haven’t had enough sleep the night before - you have to be presentable physically. You have to make sure: the books are complete, that you can afford to add new music on a pretty regular basis, that you have plenty of slips, and that your music is in good working order. So that makes it YOUR show, right?

If you consider it “YOUR” show, you figure it’s your right to put rules in place that probably don’t make a lot of sense to the people who are singing - like only bringing up one slip at a time, or not allowing people to change their song when it is their turn. And do you do this primarily to make your job easier and less complicated? And for whose benefit?

Well, host, guess what? It ISN’T your show. Yes, you are the one in charge, but really, aren’t you just a facilitator? Aren’t you there to make sure that the people who ARE at the show can get up and sing and have a good time? And ultimately make the hosting establishment enough money to pay you decent money, and at the same time have them feel very good about having karaoke as entertainment?

Granted, as the host of the show, our jobs are NOT easy if we’re doing it right. You probably DO feel tired at the end of the night, and even more so at the end of the third or fourth night in a row. There are probably nights when you’d rather just tweak that board a little and then take the night off because it isn’t working right. If a big group of your friends come in, it can be terribly tempting to sit and chat, and as a result, pay a little less attention to your job than you really should. And if your friends want to sing more times than it is really their turn to, it IS tempting to slip them in.

Something to think about: The real stars of the show are those patrons who come in week after week, looking forward to having a really good time, and hopefully laying out some cash so that your job as the hosting company is secure. As a host you are a HUGE part of the kind of time that people have at your hosting establishment.

I hear over and over again from people that they’ve been to a show where the host plays loose with the rotation. Come on, be fair to all the singers. Do not knowingly manipulate it so that certain people sing more times than others. As hosts we know that people do keep track. They pay attention.

They’re sitting there waiting to sing, they’re not there to watch music videos or listen to non-karaoke music, or dance. Unless you sell your show as DJ/karaoke, let your patrons sing. That’s why they’re there.

If your singers ask you to get certain music for them, get it. Add to your music regularly. And put all the songs in your books. Don’t have a stack of CDs sitting there beside you that aren’t in the book, so people then have to ask to look at. Spend the time putting your books together so they are complete and up-to-date. If you can’t do it yourself, make a deal with someone who does have book software and barter something or do whatever you have to do to keep those books looking good and current. Make sure you have slips - you can buy preprinted ones for almost nothing if you don’t have a computer or copier at home; you must know someone who does. Pay them a few bucks to run a couple of hundred slips off for you. Make it easy for your singers to find what they want to sing.

Start the show on time. If you know you’re going to be late, make arrangements. Don’t make the singers sit and wait for you because you aren’t prepared.

Be careful about substituting. If you take on a show, make sure you can do it, or make sure the host you put in place is good at what they do, or don’t go out and get more shows. Don’t over-commit. Nobody benefits from that.

And a final suggestion: Please don’t undercut just to get a show. That hurts everyone in the business; everyone, even you eventually. If you can’t compete talent-wise or equipment-wise, then re-evaluate - are you really ready to get into the business? There are hosting companies who have spent a lot of money and time building up successful karaoke businesses, and it takes money to do it. In the end, the hosting establishments are more likely to continue karaoke as their primary form of entertainment if the show is of a high caliber.

I hear it time and time again, “Karaoke doesn’t work here.” Well, actually “GOOD” karaoke will work just about anywhere you put it. Just remember whose show it is. Build it and they will come!

I’d love your comments. Karen Knapp karenknapp@hotmail.com