Karaoke DJ Tips

I have been a karaoke enthusiast for years, and helped DJ a few shows. I also have a very good friend who has been a karaoke DJ, or KJ as he calls himself, for over 10 years. A lot of crazy things can happen during a karaoke show, and you have to be prepared for every one of them.

There are some things it is important for every KJ to have. I believe the most important is a sense of humor. If you can keep the crowd laughing in between sets then they are bound to hang around! I have been to a couple of places and the KJ would just stand up there and announce the songs and call people's names. No inflection to their tone or any animation in their voice at all. I find this very boring. The KJ sets the tune for the night. Make sure its not off key!

You should also make sure your equipment is in good working order. Keeping an extra disc changer, speakers, and plenty of microphones is a very good idea. I don't know how many dropped microphones I've seen over the years! If you have extras you can just pick it up, and quip "We know it was the microphone making it sound like that, but you didn't have to throw it." Throwing a joke in before replacing the microphone might help calm the person's nerves and save you more repair cost.

I also think it's important to learn the atmosphere of the place you are going to be hosting. If it's a place that is totally new to you, go a few nights before hand and find out what kind of music the patrons enjoy. Because most likely some of those same people will be coming to your show, and you want to have plenty of the music they like on hand.

Music selection is one of the things you can't skimp on. You should have some of every different type on hand. Always be sure to have the modern, up to date songs available because more young people come to karaoke than you would think!

Always stay calm and keep in control of things. Set the show up from the beginning and follow your guidelines the whole night. Always keep your rotation fair. I haven't found anyone that felt cheated if a new person's name was added into the rotation, but don't add four or five new people all at the same time in line. Spread them out to make it fair to the ones who have been there the whole time. Always keep track of how many you have added so when an upset customer comes up and asks why his time hasn't came around, you have the answer right there. A notebook and pen would be handy for this. If you sound like you have the situation totally in hand, and are fair, people will understand and everything will run smoothly.

Lastly, be prepared for anything! There could be fights, people passing out, and kids running around knocking the speakers over, or any number of other things on a given night. Keep your cool, be polite, and handle every situation with confidence. If you show that you are a professional no matter what happens, you will be ask back again. Being a KJ is fun. Always enjoy yourself, and make it enjoyable for others and you can't go wrong!