Karaoke...2 drink minimum culture!

Ringo is a friend of mine from Hong Kong who left last Monday to Vancouver, Canada, to see his family. He's also going to school over there.

So as he left, we decided to have a farewell party and we were taken to a place Ringo loves: a karaoke bar. I thought I did not know how to sing, now I am sure that I do not sing: I scream... I'm so sorry for myself!!






Anyway, we were told to dress formal and we did try to make ourselves up and look pretty for this embarassing night. Actually it was excellent, I usually dont hold onto the mic during karaoke nights but here it definitely is a culture. Everyone sings. Well, Francois is the King of Karaoke!! Put on the Bee Gees or Take my Breath Away by Berlin and he's gone for sure! He's excellent!!

The karaoke bar is a culture unto itself: participatory, eclectic, convivial, habitual, and liberating. There is singing, drinking, camaraderie, and wish-fulfillment. Karaoke gives everyone a chance to be the star, if only for a night, if only for one song.
Did you actually know that Karaoke is a Japanese term meaning "empty orchestra, and is an import from Japan. In that country, karaoke bars are for both pleasure and business. Taking a client to a bar and singing for them can mean the difference between getting a contract or not; through karaoke you sing for your supper, literally. This particular nuance did not accompany karaoke from Japan.

Why has karaoke become so popular? The literature offers several reasons. One is that it fulfills a person's fantasy of being a rock star. One karaoke disc jockey has said that everyone sings in their car, in the shower, or maybe "The National Anthem" at a ball game, but karaoke gives them the chance to sing in front of an audience. For others, karaoke has corporeal benefits. Apparently some people have physical welfare after having sung here and there. So here I go, trying to make myself feel better at the Karaoke.

I had never noticed it but really, each song is accompanied by a video, which rarely has any direct relevance to the music's lyrics. The music videos are relatively cheap in quality, and appear to be turned out quickly. It is just THAT ridiculous. You see the videos and you start thinking to yourself that you can't be more ridiculous.



As the evening progresses, the atmosphere becomes less structured due in part, no doubt, to the cumulative effects of several drinks but also to the fact that patrons have grown more comfortable and inhibitions have been shed. Non-regulars sing more often, the songs become less predictable, and the singers hit their notes less often. The culture, likewise, becomes more participatory. Strangers will ask other strangers to join them for a song, much as a stranger will ask another to dance at a nightclub. You share a lot without sharing, you know what I mean: you meet people and have no inhibitions, sing together one hand holding the mic , the other one either holding onto your partner or your drink...


Karaoke is fun! Even more in Hong Kong!!