Japanese karaoke: Singing at the top of your lungs in a crowded room of friends

This week, Chris and I are writing about iconic Japanese forms of entertainment. We have already talked about Noh and bugaku (although we have yet to talk about kabuki or bunraku), and Chris is currently writing about our sumo experience. Here, I want to share a little bit about Japanese karaoke.

After living in Japan for almost a year, Chris and I have done our fair share of karaoke, and I have to say, Japanese karaoke is 100x more fun than karaoke in the US. Here are some reasons why.

Karaoke in America

In the US, there are typically two places where you can sing karaoke. The first is at a local bar on a special night, typically populated with obnoxious early 20-somethings (although there are obnoxious 40-somethings too). The second is at a professional karaoke bar, where the line-up is usually monopolized by a few overly-zealous, and very serious, singers. Regardless of where you go, you are typically forced to wait in line for hours, just to compete for the chance to sing 1 song in front of a crowd of strangers. If it’s too early in the night, the mood isn’t really there. If it’s too late in the night, most people aren’t paying attention, are drunk, or you might be so tired from waiting that you already went home by the time your name is called. I have even heard of people bribing DJs just to get their name on the list before the night’s end. As you wait, you might share a beer with some friends and sing along to a song you like, while trying not to be bothered when you hear Sweet Caroline for the 100th time.

As much as I get excited about the prospect of going to karaoke, I rarely sing because I am just too shy. I might spend 30 minutes searching for a song, another 10 waffling back and forth if I want to actually sing it, maybe talk with friends to convince someone to sing with me, and then ultimately chicken out.

Not to mention that if you do sing, you might not have the most receptive, or polite, audience. Before we left for Japan, as a send off, we went out for karaoke night with a group of our friends. However, while our friend, Geoff was singing, a drunk guy kept wandering on stage and trying to take the spotlight. We still had a lot of fun, but it would have been nice if we didnt’ have to pretend to ignore the drunk guy.

Please get off the stage, drunk guy- we’re trying to enjoy our friend’s singing.

End of the night at our karaoke going away party

So what does American karaoke sound like? Here are some examples.

First, Jeff jamming to “Just a Friend” with the audience singing along to the chorus.

Here is Chris showing off his falsetto skills while singing 80s classic, “Head Over Heels”

 

Karaoke in Japan

In Japan, karaoke is a lot different. Instead of seeking out a specific karaoke night at your local bar, there are dozens of buildings dedicated solely for karaoke 365 days of the year. In fact, even if you have trouble findings one of the many buildings with a large sign of a smiley face holding a microphone, you can just walk down any busy tourist road in a major city and find men and women holding up signs and shouting about this or that karaoke bar.

When you first enter a karaoke bar, you will approach a register where you can “order” a private room. Costs are usually based on the number of people in your group and how long you want to stay, although different bars offer different price menus. For example, some bars have a flat fee for the entire night, and most bars offer discounts for early birds (before 7pm). Many bars also have gimmicks, such as free drinks or ice cream, and if you want a great deal, you can check out bars that offer unlimited food and drinks (both alcoholic and nonalcoholic) for a little extra.

Andrew drinking sake at a local karaoke bar

Vinny trying some sake too

After ordering a private room, you will receive a room number card, two electronic ordering systems that look like extra-large gameboys with touch screens: 1 for selecting songs, and 1 for selecting food/drinks, and if you are lucky (or if you ask), a basket full of fun musical instruments, such as tambourines and maracas. I highly recommend asking for instruments!

Each room includes a booth or chairs, a table, menus, a TV, and a few microphones. However, the size of the room itself depends on the size of your group. I have gone out with a large group of friends and sung in a room large enough to host a dance party, and I have also sung in a room small enough for just me and 3 other friends.

One of the best things about Japanese karaoke is that you can pick whichever songs you want and sing many, many songs throughout the entire night, instead of compromising with just one. In addition to many J-Pop songs, such as those sung by AKB48 or Golden Bomber, and anime songs, such as the theme to Evangelion (a favorite of my friend, Walid), you will also hear traditional and inspired Japanese folk songs, such as the famous Shimauta (if you go out, everyone in your group will song along!), sultry enka songs (I especially love Tsugara Kaikyo Fuyugeshiki, sung beautifully by my friend, Naoko), and many American pop songs, from Beatles to Justin Timberlake to Lady Gaga.

Fun fact, “A whole new world” is incredibly popular, as is “Take me home, country roads”.

Songs too high or too low? You can even change the pitch to better match your voice range. Using the electronic song menu, you can also queue up a long list of songs, and add more as you go. Then, you can have fun singing songs solo, in pairs, or with the whole group. A happy memory is my friend, Lina, and I’s tradition of singing She Wolf at the end of the night, every time we went out for karaoke. In particular, we loved to imitate Shakira howling at the moon. (However, the video cuts off a little short.)

Want to add more life to the party? Grab a tambourine and join in on the fun! (Seriously, these people know how to party!)

Using the other electronic menu, you can order food and drinks whenever you feel like it (or multiple at a time) and a waiter will deliver them directly to your room. The one challenge is that the menu is often written entirely in Japanese, so unless you know your hiragana, you might need to ask a friend or do some guessing.

What’s so great about Japanese karaoke, is you get to spend time with the people you care about the most, just having fun and singing along with them. No waiting in long lines. No suffering through multiple songs you can’t stand. No rude strangers. No need to combat shyness singing in front of a crowd. From the comfort of your own booth, in the privacy of your own room, Japanese karaoke invites you to sit back, relax, and just enjoy singing.