Karaoke Pusher



I love Karaoke.  And it's not because I'm some great singer.  I just love to sing.  And when it's done in the privacy of your home in front of the people who know you best, it's not as scary as you might think.

This Friday we are having our second Decade Karaoke Party.  Not everyone likes Karaoke.  At least that's what they claim.  So I often have to trick people into singing.  Everyone has an inner rock star, and one of my missions in life is to help people let this part out.  I would have been a great drug dealer, but fortunately I choose to use my powers of influence for good instead of evil.

Here's how I do it:

• I start off the party with a hard song and sing it badly.  Not on purpose.  I'm really just not that good.
• I ask them what kind of song they would sing if they were brave enough to do it.  I have a huge repertoire of songs so there's a good chance the song will be in there.
• I suggest that we play the song, just to see what it sounds like.
• I volunteer to sing it.
• I have 2 microphones, so I coax them into holding the other mic, or at least touch it, just to see how it feels.
• I suggest that the whole group sing and that the person hold the mic far away from their mouth and sing quietly.

By the next Karaoke party, they're usually singing solos.  In fact, one person bought a Karaoke machine and hid it so his wife wouldn't know that he had become a closet Karaoke singer.  He hosted the first Decade Karaoke Party. 

If I could, I would have a Karaoke machine in my office and I would use singing as a therapy technique.  Kind of like what Tracy Ullman did as Ally's therapist on Ally McBeal.  She made Ally choose a theme song, but I think it's more important to sing in front of someone.  It's freeing to know that you can enjoy doing something without worrying about being good at it or looking foolish. 

Once you let go of those fears, anything is possible.