People asking for the mic

[bobmo]

hi all just a quick question

Is it just me or do you get sick of people asking for the mic to sing along to a song

I had a gig on sat there and there was this 1 man keeped asking for the mic to sing along to (shang a lang)he says he always sings it
I told him no because if i give you it everyone will want it and i think it spoills the night

do you think im being mean?????

and any suggestions for next time

thanks:beer1:

[yourdj]

[ Please feel free to repost without the swearing ]

[jon s]

I never give out the mic for singing unless it's the bride or groom (it's their day) again like you say, then it give everyone license to have a go.
Try a spare cheap mic on a seperate channel and just turn the volume down when you've had enough.

[StarZSoundS]

My biggest Pet Hate ever.....I refuse to do it.Its not an equipment thing.


It was drummed into me when I was a Redcoat never to do it.The only time anyone should consider doing it is if they think they are better than Elvis,Sinatra or Robbie....and ,of course,none of them are.What the Guests are doing is drowning out the performances by the Stars.:eek: :eek: :eek:

I have fallen out so many times with people about it and have been physically threatened for not handing it over....it doesn't bother me!!:eek: :eek:


There WAS a local DJ who used to sing-a-long occasionally round here.Although he was a Mate I had to leave the room when he did it....no amount of telling him would stop him doing it.

Raising the bar....best practise......in my opinion this should be rule number one.its what Karaoke was invented for.:) :) :)

[JTRS]

My biggest Pet Hate ever.....I refuse to do it.Its not an equipment thing.



Raising the bar....best practise......in my opinion this should be rule number one.its what Karaoke was invented for.:) :) :)


It's one of my biggest pet hates too

I tell them that it isn't a Karaoke night and I haven't brought my vocal mics so singing isn't possible. If they don't accept that at face value I tell them my microphones are specific to certain things and the one I am using is a speech microphone and not suitable for singing into. I then apologise that it isn't possible and excuse myself from the conversation because I need to sort out the music.

JTRS

[Javlingames]

Always say no to that, just have to stand your ground. Ive been threatened and called a few things but tell them no way are they singing. Ive only been headbutted once and in 18 years of djin isnt too bad.

[WWDJ]

Ive only been headbutted once and in 18 years of djin isnt too bad.

i'd call that bad as i've never been headbutted in that many years! :D

[gaza]

I think this is happening more a more of late, i had it again at a prom, the young man who also worked part time at the venue ( so he was a little sure of himself) came up and asked for the mic so he could sing along to a tune, but i just said " no sorry cant do that".

[Ecstatic Events]

Yes I hand out the mic, I did a suprise 40th a few month back... Before the Birthday Boy arrived I was playing chart stuff, Lady Gaga, JLS etc

He arrived, we wished him well. He then came up to me about 10 mins after he arrived saying "we are from a family of musicians and this CR*P you are playing is not acceptable" The said track was Bad Romance by Lada Gaga

He then asked for SKA all night, of course I obliged and met his wish.

Towards the end of the night, a guest of his was hassling me like hell to Sing-Along... I wasnt to keen, but thought "family of musicians" hell why not...

To say he was shockingly bad is an understatement!

That was my entertainment for the evening.

But as a rule, I DONT do Karaoke :)

[rob1963]

hi all just a quick question

Is it just me or do you get sick of people asking for the mic to sing along to a song

I had a gig on sat there and there was this 1 man keeped asking for the mic to sing along to (shang a lang)he says he always sings it
I told him no because if i give you it everyone will want it and i think it spoills the night

do you think im being mean?????

and any suggestions for next time

thanks:beer1:

You're not being mean at all.

I also HATE being asked for the mic so somebody (who is usually drunk) can ruin a perfectly good song by "singing" all over it.

Fortunately, I don't get this so much these days, but when I do, I always give the same reply "No. Sorry, but it's a disco, not a karaoke"

It would also make the drunk idiot concerned the centre of attention, which is the last thing I want to do.

:bang:

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

My biggest Pet Hate ever.....I refuse to do it.Its not an equipment thing.


It was drummed into me when I was a Redcoat never to do it.The only time anyone should consider doing it is if they think they are better than Elvis,Sinatra or Robbie....and ,of course,none of them are.What the Guests are doing is drowning out the performances by the Stars.:eek: :eek: :eek:

I have fallen out so many times with people about it and have been physically threatened for not handing it over....it doesn't bother me!!:eek: :eek:


There WAS a local DJ who used to sing-a-long occasionally round here.Although he was a Mate I had to leave the room when he did it....no amount of telling him would stop him doing it.

Raising the bar....best practise......in my opinion this should be rule number one.its what Karaoke was invented for.:) :) :)

Hear hear! :eek: :D :beer1:

[Penfold42]

I find a mic is a very personal piece of eqipment which I never lend out.

[StarZSoundS]

Hear hear! :eek: :D :beer1:



Its only taken eight months Buddy.......:beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1: :beer1:

[rob1963]

My biggest Pet Hate ever.....I refuse to do it.Its not an equipment thing.

It was drummed into me when I was a Redcoat never to do it.The only time anyone should consider doing it is if they think they are better than Elvis,Sinatra or Robbie....and ,of course,none of them are.What the Guests are doing is drowning out the performances by the Stars.:eek: :eek: :eek:

I have fallen out so many times with people about it and have been physically threatened for not handing it over....it doesn't bother me!!:eek: :eek:

There WAS a local DJ who used to sing-a-long occasionally round here.Although he was a Mate I had to leave the room when he did it....no amount of telling him would stop him doing it.

Raising the bar....best practise......in my opinion this should be rule number one.its what Karaoke was invented for.:) :) :)


Hear hear! :eek: :D :beer1:

*Makes a note that Darren agreed with Martin about something*

:D :D :D

[yourdj]

[ Please feel free to repost without the swearing ]

Sorry :)

only give the mic if i know it will work.

the end of this vid has the groom singing new york new york:

YouTube- Your DJ - East Close Wedding Disco.m4v

[Shakermaker Promotions]

I don't like doing it.
At a wedding last year, one of the bridesmaids came running up to the decks when I started to play 'I wanna dance with somebody'. She shouted at me "Oi, give us the mic, I want to singalong to this"...I said "Sorry, No" and she had gave me a look like thunder. She then ran off towards the Bride and obviously told her and started pointing in my direction. I had encountered this thing before so in my meetings I always state that I won't let people use the mic unless it has been agreed for speeches etc and everyone usually adheres to that. This Bride had already agreed that no'one would do that so I was a bit confused, surprised and cheesed off when the girl came back over saying that the Bride said it was ok. I told her "Sorry, but it was agreed that no'one would be using my mic and at the end of the day, I don't want you using it".. She wasn't happy.

Slightly off topic-ish but...at a Karaoke night I was doing on saturday, a lady who was pretty full of herself gave me a right hard time. I set up in the morning and when I arrived she came straight over to me with a list and said "There you go mate, that's what I want to sing so sort it". I told her straight away that I would do my best but I needed to make sure that everyone had a chance to have a go. It was at a social club I did earlier in the year and it went down really well previously. On her list were around 7 songs. I got her on first to keep her quiet and she was ultra confident but not very good. After she sang she turned to me and said "I'm famous, I got through to the X Factor"...I said "Well done" and left it at that.

A couple of singers later and she is hassling me to see when she was on again... "When it's my turn again mate? I'm better than this lot"..."You'll be on soon" I said and continued what I was doing. When her time arrived again and I'd cue'd up her next track, she decided that she wanted to sing something else from the list first...it was 'Fame' by Irene Cara... "This is the song that got me through to the X Factor" she said... "Ok" I replied.

She started giving it some when the song started and then decided to jump off the stage and was standing infront of the speakers. I signalled her to get back on the stage as I didn't want the speakers to start whistling (they hadn't yet), but she ignored me and started grinning so I turned her mic down. She was back on the stage in a flash and as it was an instrumental break in the song, she decided to turn to me and start moaning... "I know what I'm doing" she shouted... "I know it will make everyone's ears ring if I stand too close to the speakers".... I laughed and said "I'm not bothered about everyone's ears darling, I'm bothered about my equipment. If you know it's going to do it, don't do it!"...she huffed and puffed and then finished the song before throwing my mic to the floor (it was a carpeted stage so no harm done).

I decided to get some fresh air as it was hot so announced that I would play a couple of songs and then return with the karaoke. I nipped outside and she was stood there with a bloke. He turned straight to me and said "Why did you turn her down mate?" and I explained why. They laughed, she shook her head and then said "Look mate, I know what I'm doing...I'm famous round here". I had, had enough by that time and replied to her "Look, not being funny but firstly, if the mic is damaged, I'll be sending you or the club a bill for repair. Secondly, if you knew what you were doing you would not be holding the mic the way you are because you are muffling the end of it which means that it is not giving out the full frequencies of your voice and I have to turn the volume up so that people can hear you and lastly, have respect for the equipment. It's not cheap and it's my living"... She stood open mouthed for about 10 seconds and then said "Sorry" and that was it. She did another couple of songs later, holding the mic properly and was well behaved.

I spoke to her afterwards whilst I was packing up and explained to her that I had been there and done the whole band thing so I knew what I was talking about. She totally understood, didn't take my comments as offensive or anything and apologised. Other than that, it was a great night. Sorry for the long explanation.

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

only give the mic if i know it will work.



Have you got a crystal ball then?

How do you know it will work in advance?

[rob1963]

Good post, Gary.

I don't do karaoke, but if I did & someone threw my mic on the stage (carpeted or not) that's the last song they'd have sung that night. End of.

[DJ James Lake]

This is why most of the time I used a wired mic with a 2 foot lead.

[JTRS]

Good post, Gary.

I don't do karaoke, but if I did & someone threw my mic on the stage (carpeted or not) that's the last song they'd have sung that night. End of.

I've had that and have simply stopped the Karaoke and changed to a disco, any complaints were answered with me explaining that my mic had been damaged by it been thrown down and Karaoke wasn't possible anymore that evening. The moans and complaints were then directed to the person who had 'damaged' my mic

JTRS

[Spirits High]

I find a mic is a very personal piece of eqipment which I never lend out.

But occasionally leave at venues :p :p :D

[Shakermaker Promotions]

It was a wired mic. I only use wired mic's for karaoke incase this happens. As I said, it was ok because the stage was carpeted and it just has a dent in the shield.
I need to get some replacement shields for the SM58's and also PG58's. Can anyone recommend anywhere? The last time I looked on Ebay (I think) they were around £10.00 each.

[rob1963]

It was a wired mic. I only use wired mic's for karaoke incase this happens. As I said, it was ok because the stage was carpeted and it just has a dent in the shield.

Gary...how can you say it was ok when she dented the windshield which will cost you a tenner to replace?

[Disco Tech Liverpool]

I HAAAATTTTTTEEEEEEE IT...... BUT ...........

Once now and then it is worth doing it, I kept getting asked once could blah blah sing a song to which I refused twice, then a girl said the usual 'everyone will be made up if blah blah' sings, I gave up in the end and said ok, only for a young lad who was severlely handicapped to be wheeled down in a wheelchair, there was no record I could have played that night that would have got the reaction that this guy singing did, it was a standing hairs moment. It lifted the roof off and the party didn't look back. It's very few and far between that this type of thing will happen though.

My usual answers are :
Q) Can I sing ? -

A) I don't know I've never heard you and won't be tonight.
A) I don't give the mic out (followed by me having to say this over and over again)
A) I don't give the mic out as once I give it to you then everybody will want it.
A) This is a professional disco, not karaoke (hehe)

Some of the things that the people come back at you with are even more annoying

[Shaun]

Q: Can I sing on the Mic.

A: No, sorry.


I find there's no point in trying to justify my reasoning with people that've been drinking. Short and to the point works best.

[welby]

I'm reading these posts and nodding my head in agreement with a big grin on my face.

I never give the mic out!

I think it has something to with that most people think they can sing, when in fact they can't and no one has got the balls to tell them that.

Another pet hate is when some drunken person fuelled up on pop vodka with a skirt no bigger than a pelmet insisting I play something "modern", usually consistig of Sean Paul, Beanie Man, Serani etc etc.... because she doesn't know any classic tunes, whereas most of the people at the venue are jumping, clapping and strutting their stuff!

But I just smile sweetly, trying to avoid the stench of booze and fags on her breath and say "yes my dear".

It's all part of the job. Smile your on camera :D

[sweetie]

did a wedding recently where I nipped out to the toilets and when I came back I cueued up a song and flicked on the mic to say something and it was missing!
A few minutes later a guy comes up with my sm58 and says his mates took it for a laugh. I was furious and told hime to send them up to me. they never arrived!

[rob1963]

did a wedding recently where I nipped out to the toilets and when I came back I cueued up a song and flicked on the mic to say something and it was missing!
A few minutes later a guy comes up with my sm58 and says his mates took it for a laugh. I was furious and told hime to send them up to me. they never arrived!

This is why I never leave the equipment.

[Dynamic Entertainment]

I have it in my contract that we dont offer karaoke, nor a open mic...

[Jonathan Ford]

This is why I never leave the equipment.

I know it's off topic for this thread, but I had a horrible night on Saturday in this regard. I had been unwell most of the day, and was booked for a party in a marquee in the grounds of a private house in Derbyshire, for around 50 kids and 150 adults. Around 2230, I was absolutely desperate for the loo, and headed off into the house to find it, leaving 3-4 tracks on automix. I'd been gone less than a minute when all went quiet. I returned to the decks to find some 14 year old toe-rag messing with the gear...I was livid. Ashamed to say I got a bit sweary with the young man, and literally dragged him off by the scruff of his neck to find his parents, who gave him the biggest rounding up I've ever seen!

On topic, I couldn't agree more with what's already been said. Certainly one of my pet hates, and I never hand it over, no matter who it upsets.

[bobmo]

well everyone thanks for your replys, but as i say its just one of the occupational hazards we need to deal with!!!!

[sweetie]

This is why I never leave the equipment.

:eek: you must have a bladder of steel. I always make sure I have time to get back to play the next song and will wait for a song that is long enough to ensure this but when nature calls it's difficult to ignore it!
As it was a wedding I wouldn't have liked to stop the music and ask for the return of my mic (via my backup) because of one plonker but may have had a word with the best man.

[rob1963]

:eek: you must have a bladder of steel.

I find that if I don't drink after early afternoon, I can drink all through my gig & won't need the loo until after I've finished!

:D

[womble]

I returned to the decks to find some 14 year old toe-rag messing with the gear...I was livid. Ashamed to say I got a bit sweary with the young man, and literally dragged him off by the scruff of his neck to find his parents, who gave him the biggest rounding up I've ever seen!

What did they round him up to? 15?

I've never heard that turn of phrase before.

[Larry B Entertainment]

What did they round him up to? 15?

I've never heard that turn of phrase before.

:eek:

Alright then, his parents Squared him up :)

[Megamix]

I agree its most annoying - trouble is once one person does it others join in and you end up looking like a chump whilst they prattle on. Its not as if you can say the mike isn't working - as you've been using it. I tend to keep dropping the volume of the mike whilst I increase the volume of the music. It seems to have the desired effect.

[Mark Wild]

Only if the bride or groom want it or want someone else to have it, if it's someone else I'd need for the bride or groom to tell me personally. None of this "I'm the brides sisters, uncles, cousins, brother" stuff.

Some people think it's thier God given right to have it when they choose and the look on thier face when I shake my head is great ! I waggle my left eyebrow at them to tease then, It's MINE !!!! Man I love my job ! LOL

[sweetie]

reminds me of another gig I did where the groom explicitly warned me that people would want to sing along and not to let them. You can imagine my surprise when during a song I could hear some bloke trying to sing along tunelessly yet my mic was in front of me. They had managed to get their hands on the venues pa mic and it took a good half hour before they got tired and we got it back from them!

[StarZSoundS]

Great thread....and of particular interest to me....because I have been so against it and upset so many people for so long about it....it leads me to more rationale about it...

One of my last songs is normally Angels....all night I have been building up to get everyone in a circle singing along to the song....It is the Finale.About one in ten times I get some young buck trying to tear the Mic out of my hand to spoil it......No :Censored: chance!!

As a race we crave applause....I know I do... and I get plenty.So the Woman who clanks eight requests in at Garys function is trying to set her stall out for plenty too.But I in no way humour them when they come to my Functions.

Because.... this is the bit I am leading to......I am responsible for everything that comes out of those speakers good or bad. If the woman who wants to sing eight songs turns the audience against her (which she will) through overkill....she is not responsible.... I am.Feeding an individuals ego is not in my remit.I am there for all the Guests not one!!!

By the same token ....most people do not like their Artists sung over so I won't allow it.IT IS ACTUALLY CHEATING.Even a poor singer sounds ten times better when they are singing ALONG with a track.That person would get exposed if they were honest enough to do it on Karaoke!!


Now for Gods Sake help me off my :soapbox: or I'm going to be here all night.


Man........ this really is my pet hate!!!!:bang: :bang: :bang: :bang:

[yourdj]

Have you got a crystal ball then?

How do you know it will work in advance?

OK then it depends how good looking the girl is :p

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

OK then it depends how good looking the girl is :p

:lol:
:muppet:

[NKR]

You want to try having a vocal artist as part of your show as what invariably happens is someone wants to have a go thinking its Karaoke kit.

My mic goes nowhere and nobody but Kev gets to sing on the system (unless its prearranged and its someone like the brides sister who has her own backing tracks, etc - have done that one)

We make it very clear when people book us it is not a karaoke system. We don't do Karaoke and nobody will be allowed on the mic to sing bar Kev. We push this home very clearly to ensure the point is remembered on the night.

We do get the odd plonker who tries it, but not so often (although did have some drunk women try and run off with a mic to sing last Thursday night - silly woman)

Pet hate of mine too - seems we are all in agreement on this one.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

Q: Can I sing on the Mic.

A: No, sorry.


I find there's no point in trying to justify my reasoning with people that've been drinking. Short and to the point works best.


Couldnt word it better myself. Chances are people are asking to sing are sooo drunk that explaining why not is just wasting your breath

[robbiedj]

I usually explain it's a dj microphone and fades the music out when used.

It normally works but if they try to use it, I simply slip the slider down on the decks and say I told you so!

Funny, but they never seem to realise that it doesn't happen when I'm using it. :D

[Excalibur]

I find a mic is a very personal piece of eqipment which I never lend out.
Tight git. :p


Have you got a crystal ball then?

How do you know it will work in advance?
You don't. You win some, you lose some.


This is why most of the time I used a wired mic with a 2 foot lead.
Good idea Son.

Gary...how can you say it was ok when she dented the windshield which will cost you a tenner to replace?
And I called Penmare a tight git! :eek: Sorry Tony. :o :o


Only if the bride or groom want it or want someone else to have it, if it's someone else I'd need for the bride or groom to tell me personally. None of this "I'm the brides sisters, uncles, cousins, brother" stuff.

Some people think it's thier God given right to have it when they choose and the look on thier face when I shake my head is great ! I waggle my left eyebrow at them to tease then, It's MINE !!!! Man I love my job ! LOL
Hmmmm. " Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely "


OK then it depends how good looking the girl is :p
Been there, done that. Sadly, nowadays, it has less of an influence. :( :(


And don't forget folks, good DJ mixers have kill switches on the mic inputs.;) ;)