I’ll tell you a secret. Everybody does it. Schoolgirls, adults and businessmen alike. It takes place in buildings with covered windows in private rooms that you discreetly rent by the hour. It’s karaoke. The Japanese abbreviation that means “empty orchestra” and is performed by singing your favourite songs to a pre-recorded track, reading the lyrics from a TV monitor.
The ladies in the photo have absolutely everything to do with the article.

Karaoke has gone from trend to hype to now being just one the many things people do to amuse themselves. Gone are the karaoke bars, the taxis with karaoke and other crazy things from the 1980s. Now it is all done in a karaoke box, just like they did it in the movie “Lost in translation”. The boxes are actually small rooms located in “karaoke palaces”, buildings that host between ten or 50 rooms.

As you come in the first thing you see is a front desk. Here you get your room. The clerk wants to know how many people there are in your party so that you’ll get a room sized accordingly. It’s also a good idea to say how long you want it for. There is often the possibility to extend, but at rush hour you usually can’t. One hour is good if it’s your first time and you just want to try it, but I’d recommend at least two. Time flies in there once you get started.

Last thing to select at the “front” is your options for drinks. All sorts of drinks are served and often food to. The drinks are usually bundled in different options, for example a fixed hourly rate including all-you-can-drink beer and wine, another price if you want beer, wine AND liquor et-cetera. Non alcoholic drinks are usually included, free of charge.

So now you’re set and the clerk will take you to the room. Since things are very organised in Japan you are now holding a small plastic basket in your hand. In it you find a clipboard with your bill attached, brings to the cashier later, a small hot towel for everyone each to wipe their hands and the remote control to the air conditioning. This varies from place to place. (What surprises me is that nobody ever seems to steal the microphones, which should be more valuable than an AC remote?)

Once in the room the party is officially started. One of you should quickly pick up the phone and order the first round of drinks. The songs are listed in thick catalogues, by artist and by song. Usually there is a special catalogue for English songs, ask for an extra one if there are not enough. To chose a song punch the number into the remote control and press the green button. This places the song in a que. Now many places also have a PDA like remote control where you can use to browse and search songs with.

There are a few unwritten rules of karaoke. They are especially important if you are singing with Japanese people. If it is any comfort I can tell you that I have bluntly broken them all. Anyway, it is really just a few good-to-know things:

1. Don’t cue to many songs in a row. Make sure that everyone in the party gets to sing before you grab the remote again.

2. Don’t sing along when someone else is singing. Let the singer perform. Another reason for this is that it saves your voice for the next day. Screaming your lungs out for three straight hours is not good for the throat.

3. Be generous with the performer. The Japanese are very likely to applause your songs, and it’s more encouraging and fun.

When you come to Japan it is very likely that you end up in a karaoke place at least once. Business men go after work and other westerners who live here seem to like karaoke as much as the Japanese. If you want to be prepared, practice before you go. Pick a song that is easy for you to sing. The karaoke beginners number one mistake is choosing the “wrong” song. Something to high pitched and difficult, take instead something close to your natural talking voice.