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All About Karaoke

The word 'karaoke' comes from the Japanese words for 'empty' and 'orchestra' and this popular form of entertainment has taken the world by storm. In karaoke, participants sing along with the recorded music of songs that have been prepared without the vocal track. Using a microphone, their voice is added to the music and everyone can enjoy how good - or bad - they sing. In most cases the lyrics are provided via a video screen that scrolls the words across it or from a book of printed lyrics.

Karaoke may be new to the rest of the world, but it has been a form of entertainment in Japan since the early 1970s. The first karaoke machine invented by musician Daisuke Inoue in Kobe became a very common form of entertainment in Japan and Southeast Asia through the 1980s. It is a tradition in Japanese culture to have musical entertainment during a dinner part and Inoue came up with the idea after he was asked to provide a recording of one of his performances for a company vacation so that the people attending it could sing along.

The original karaoke machines were leased to stores that bought their own music. Placed in hotels and restaurants, the business quickly boomed and more and more people wanted them. They provided a way for people to interact and learn to get along with each other as well as providing a new form of entertainment. Unfortunately, Inoue did not patent his machine and in 1986 he lost the right to collect any money on his invention. The first commercially produced karaoke machines were instead tweaked and then manufactured by a Filipino company. This is common version of the karaoke machine we all know today.

The first machines used cassette tapes to produce the music but as these faded out all over the world, newer machines that used CDs, VCDs, and DVDs were introduced. The company Taito introduced a machine called the X2000 that downloaded songs and music via a telephone network. This type of machine ultimately replaced the traditional media units and they are now connected to a fiber-optic link that downloads the music within seconds for the karaoke singers to use.

By the 1990s, karaoke had jumped the Pacific Ocean into the United States and Canada. Other Western countries were also introduced to this popular form of amateur entertainment and karaoke bars began to pop up all over the place. These establishments provide everything that is needed for participants to get up on stage and sing. The only thing that was needed was willing singers to step up on the stage and grab the microphone.

Karaoke has quickly grown into one of the largest types of night life entertainment. Many bars now have 'karaoke nights' and the equipment that is used is constantly being improved on. There are even some bars that include a dance floor and disco lighting for patrons to get up and dance as amateurs take the mike.