Karaoke CrisisJapan's No. 1 karaoke crooner Yumiko Fujii, left, and runnerup Nakao Matsunaga sing a duet at a karaoke room in Tokyo's Shinjuku entertainment district. Japan's economic slump has triggered a slide in the number of karaoke bars and singers. Fujii, named the country's best songster at the All-Japan Karaoke Throne Battle, insists "karaoke can't die." (Shizuo Kambayashi/The Associated Press)
BY HANS GREIMELTHE ASSOCIATED PRESS
TOKYO -- After a decade in the karaoke business, lounge owner Kagura Muto has heard her share of sour notes. But business of late has been a different sort of flat.
Under the white-hot spotlights at her bar, a retiree cuts loose a raucous, rough-on-the-ears rendition of "I Left My Heart in San Francisco." Nary a soul is here to clap.
"Ten years ago, this place would have been packed with 20 people," Muto complains after punching in the off-key crooner's next song. "Now nobody wants to sing. It's all because of the bad economy."
Considered by many Japan's most insidious export since Godzilla, karaoke blossomed into a global, multibillion-dollar business after its 1971 inception by a Japanese rock-and-roll drummer who can't read a note of music.
Fanatics rave about its "health" benefits, drunken bellowers consider it the great social leveler and the uninitiated find it hard to resist -- at least once. Karaoke has become as universally recognized as Mount Fuji, and sing-along soundtracks provide alter-egos for millions of Sinatra wannabes from Laos to Las Vegas.
But in the land of its birth, karaoke buffs are singing the blues.
Japan's decadelong economic slump has spurred a five-year slide in both the number of karaoke bars and singers. Some of the nation's biggest karaoke companies are abandoning the business, while others are trying such innovations as karaoke songs on mobile phones and karaoke for the car.
Fans decry the decline of the only pastime that lets tone-deaf crooners indulge their inner Madonna.
"Karaoke can't die," insists Yumiko Fujii, who was crowned the country's No. 1 karaoke songster at the All-Japan Karaoke Throne Battle in November. "It's really too bad people are spending less money on it. Karaoke's like a vitamin pill for the heart."
Karaoke's decrescendo began with the collapse of Japan's booming bubble economy. Soaring corporate bankruptcies and record unemployment forced a budget-strapped public to cut back on karaoke nights that often run hundreds of dollars.
The number of participants peaked in 1994 and has tumbled nearly 20 percent since, according to the "Karaoke White Paper" released in October by the All-Japan Karaoke Industrialist Association. The number of places to sing began shrinking two years later and has plunged 16 percent as more shops go belly up.
Still, that leaves 48 million Japanese inflicting their voices from behind the microphone -- ample evidence karaoke is far from its final refrain.
The average Japanese goes singing 10 times a year, and thousands enroll in karaoke classes. Several karaoke channels are standard fare on cable television. Train stations are still surrounded by multistory, neon-lit karaoke palaces, where bosses, underlings, families and friends gather in smoky "boxes" with sticky floors to belt out tunes and throw back beers.
But industry officials warn that the downward trend has just begun and is taking an increasingly bigger bite out of the $7.3 billion-a-year business.
"The karaoke boom is over," says Shirou Kataoka, director of the trade group. "If Japan's economy doesn't recover, neither will karaoke."
Giga Networks Co., a major maker of karaoke machines, was among the first to leave the field. It says selling downloadable ringing tones for mobile phones is more profitable.
Tokyo-based Clarion, the first to mass-market karaoke equipment in the 1970s, followed suit. Its karaoke sales had tumbled 50 percent over the last 10 years.
Karaoke is also a victim of a passe image.
"Nowadays, young people would rather spend their money on their mobile phones," concedes karaoke's 62-year-old inventor, Daisuke Inoue, who compares karaoke's sliding fortune with the Japanese fads for bowling and billiards that boomed then faded.
Underscoring the trend, "Evening Hit Parade," a must-see Saturday night TV show for years that featured celebrities and pop stars singing their favorite karaoke tunes, was recently scrapped by Nippon Television.
Karaoke's trying hard to freshen its image.
Some karaoke machines now calculate on screen how many calories a singer burns, or they play music-tailored workout videos to have people literally sweating and singing to the oldies. Others measure the singers' pitch and tempo and rate their singing prowess. The automatic "applause" button has also injected pep.
Toyota, in tandem with several karaoke firms, has developed karaoke for the car. And toy maker Takara scored a hit with e-kara: Equipped with a snap-on, credit-card-sized song cartridge, the e-kara microphone plugs into any television, instantly transforming it into song-box. Priced at just $50, it's a recession-proof alternative to karaoke bar tabs that easily run triple that.
Then there's dial-a-song. Just ring up the karaoke hot line on your mobile phone and download the latest hits to serenade innocent bystanders. Taito Corp. is working on a karaoke machine that will automatically "fix" a singer's voice to smooth out noxious notes.
For the hard-core crowd, all that is just a diversion. They'll keep singing no matter what because karaoke is more than a hobby, it's a lifestyle.
Grand champion Fujii has a case full of trophies to prove it.
"I practice singing every day in the car," she says before belting out a gale-force song in a cramped karaoke room decked out with signature spotlights, lounge chairs and a full spread of french fries, squid rings and crispy shrimp chips.
"My husband only sings after he's had a couple drinks in him," she says. "The thinking is completely different."
For Fujii and thousands of others entering contests every year, karaoke is a world of flashy clothes, soft-focus videos and structured etiquette: always ask before barging in on someone else's song and keep clapping under control.
Dressed in her best karaoke finery of knee-high leather boots and low-cut, black velvet dress, Fujii delights in letting loose with the high notes. Staring at the ceiling, she sways her arm like a snake charmer in a world all her own.
"I like singing just for myself," Fujii says. "When I am singing, I feel like the local star."
Mobile Beat - The DJ Magazine - Karaoke: Dead or In recovery?by Greg Tutwiler
The Future of Karaoke: As vocal entertainment evolves, KJs have to adapt or become extinct
Karaoke has its roots in the Far East, emerging in the early '80s from a nightclub in Kobe City, Japan. The story (or perhaps legend) goes, that a guitarist could not arrive one night for his scheduled engagement. Not wanting to disappoint his dining guests, the club owner recorded some musical accompaniments on tape for the crowd to sing along to. It was such a hit that bar after bar picked up the contagious pastime. True or not, karaoke has become a cultural staple in Japan as well as the United States. And in the past ten years countries like Korea, China, Southeast Asia, Australia and Europe have accounted for the highest number of karaoke sales. This entertainment phenomenon has changed the way we look at recreation.
Is the song fading out?
But in the past eight to ten months the karaoke scene seems to have changed. This is part of an e-mail I received recently: ...I've been hosting karaoke shows for ten years with pretty good success. At one time I had six shows a week. Now I'm down to one show a week with two systems mothballed in the garage. Others I've talked to have similar stories. What's going on? Is karaoke dying out? Is the ride over??
I must admit this e-mail didn't surprise me. I too have heard stories of KJs throwing in the towel for lack of work. I've asked myself the same questions. Is it really as bad as it seems? After some research, I've come up with information that supports anything but an end to karaoke.
I took a little trip around town recently, investigating rumors that you can find karaoke supplies in big departments stores. Retailers like Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Toys 'R' Us and Target, all have several different styles of CDG players and a decent selection of karaoke CDs. Even the toy aisles offer sing-along aids. One manufacture, Singing Machine, projects sales of over one million karaoke machines this year alone. A department store clerk told me that karaoke machines were one of their hottest items this past Christmas season. In general, sales of karaoke related merchandise have increased. And in some cases, manufactures have seen their lines expand.
Solid products survive and thrive
Another company that has been there almost from the beginning of karaoke in the U.S. sees a bright future ahead for the sing along sport. Sound Choice was founded by brothers Kurt and Derek Slep in 1985, in a small apartment in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company evolved from a franchise of theme park recording booths. While they had a large library of tunes to choose from, they were getting an increasing number of requests for songs that they didn't have. The Sleps saw an opportunity to branch out and fill a growing need. They sold the franchise, and birthed one of today's leading karaoke software companies.
Seventeen years later, Sound Choice operates from a 25,000-square-foot, $2 million facility just south of Charlotte. They have seventy employees that staff the studios, production, manufacturing, graphics and marketing departments, as well as employing in-house musicians and singers. They own the licenses to over 12,000 songs, and hold over 40% of the market share of the karaoke industry with retail sales topping $18 million last year.
In spite of the weakened economy, Sound Choice is seeing growth. They are set to launch a new line of products for the retail shelf in an exclusive venture with Radio Shack. They have developed a new line of CDGs, The Performers Choice, to fill the growing consumer niche of home enthusiasts. It appears that instead of slowing down, karaoke has shifted from an almost exclusively night club outlet, to a very accessible consumer commodity. Now, singers own their own discs, machines, and in some cases, complete systems for their own personal satisfaction.
Changing key
So while some KJs are seeing their club crowds dwindle, the consumer market is swelling. One KJ saw it this way; "I had a very big following, but the crowd was pretty nerdy as far as bar patrons go. Most of them didn't drink (alcohol), didn't smoke, and really didn't like hanging around that kind of environment. As soon as they figured out that they could buy their own stuff, they started having private weekly parties in smoke and alcohol-free clubrooms. When I lost two club gigs for lack of participation, I decided I either needed to join them or give up. I set up camp in a local coffee house, and within weeks we were packed. The shop owner was happy because he was selling more coffee and donuts on a Tuesday night than ever before. The crowd is well-behaved, and we're all having fun."
Now that it's relatively easy for consumers to do it themselves, we KJs have to begin to offer the singers something they can't do for themselves. It's pretty hard to create a live stage feel in your basement. Add some lights, or stage props, or costumes for the singers to use while they sing. Videotape the performance or broadcast it on a wide-screen TV. I spoke with one KJ who actually purchased a one-watt broadcast license. He broadcasts every karaoke show he does live on the radio. "Singers go out in the parking lot and listen to each other, or record themselves on a boom box." It's the novelty of it that keeps them excited about it, he says.
Diversity
The days of the "dry" karaoke show are over. A karaoke show today needs to be more than just assembly line singing. It needs excitement and added entertainment value. It's time to think out of the box and swim in the same stream as the consumer. If they are not coming to where you are, it's time to go to them. Arenas like shopping malls, car dealerships, lawn parties, county fairs, coffee shops, strip shopping center parking lots, and retirement community centers are all golden opportunities waiting for the first innovative KJ to come along. Think "Event" instead of just "karaoke show." Think "Stage Performance" instead of just "sing-along." Take your show to the next level. Become a promoter or producer as well as a KJ. It's going to be the flash, sizzle and creativity that maintain the karaoke fan base of the twenty-first century.
Greg Tutwiler is managing editor of Singer Magazine http://www.singermagazine.com
Japan Research and Analysis through Internet Informationby Yasuharu Dando The Music Industry Is Sliding Down a Slope of Self-Destruction (April 2003)(Japanese edition:21/NOV/2002)
The slump in sales in music CDs and software is serious. In 2000 there were several million-selling hits in succession, but the following year (2001) there were less than half the 22 best-selling albums produced the previous year, and only one super-seller single produced in the whole year. The Japan Record Association makes the excuse that illegal copies of CDs have had an extremely negative influence, but I wonder if that is actually the case. Even during the peak in the popularity of CDs in 1999, the author suggested that the system of selling music CDs had a very unique structure, being far too dependent on only the young generation, and as a result of the music industry's swallowing that concept wholesale, what they were actually doing was cutting off their nose to spite their face. It appears that the author's concerns at that time have in fact become reality. I would like to give a warning now that, unless the music industry, which has generally been thought to be strong in times of economic recession, protects musical culture, and amends the strategic mistakes it has made in developing the market so far, its future will inevitably mean slipping and sliding down the slope of self-destruction.
Extreme Dependence on a Unique Structure
In the 1990s, sales of music CDs were so incredible that even if four or five million copies of an item were sold annually, it was not treated especially as a social phenomenon. At that time, the "baby boomer junior generation" was slightly less than 10 million, and so among the consumers of music there was a group that could be called a "sub-division of the general public." The consumers of mega-hits were principally members of this sub-group, and did not include consumers of the middle-aged and older generations. That is the reason that the power of the impact on society of the million-sellers of the old days has been lost.
Kazuo Nomura, Professor at Kokugakuin University sees the quality of the mega-hits as follows: "It is important to pay attention to the fact that almost all of the mega-hit songs had some kind of tie-up with television networks. When music is planned by basing it on advanced marketing techniques, and marketing campaigns that center on television broadcasting are conducted, and these campaigns that are so focused on visual images are as successful as they have been, I cannot help but have my doubts as to whether the young people who are the targets of such marketing today could truly be called lovers of music."
Until recently, because this younger generation had a relatively large amount of money to use freely, the music industry unthinkingly believed that it was a safe bet to depend on this stratum of society. Moreover, those areas that were only moderate in their success and did not produce mega-hits could be cut out and thrown away. Thus there was major restructuring of, for example, the enka (Japanese-style ballads) side of the business. However, the explosive popularity of mobile telephones, and their rapid diversification meant that the average amount of money needed to cover telecommunications activities each month per person came to as much as 10,000 yen. As a result, the amount of money that young people could spend freely was considerably reduced, so the foundation for the creation of continuing mega-hits was completely destroyed. The domestic annual money spent on production of music software in Japan reached a peak of US$5 billion in 1998, but then went down three years in a row, and in 2001 was as low as $4.1 billion.
Personally, I believe that there has also been a decline in the quality of the music itself. To me both the melody lines and the power of the music's appeal seem much weaker. I can't help but think that the artificial way of bringing people up has made both the receivers of music (the listeners) and the creators and producers of music much poorer, in the same way that happens to cows which, though naturally herbivorous, are force-fed meat-based bone meal, with dire consequences.
According to a survey of trends in the entire music software industry conducted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), the scale of the music software industry market is as follows:
Year ----- Amount
1997 ----- $17.64 billion
1998 ----- $16.35 billion
1999 ----- $15.28 billion
2000 ----- $14.23 billionThe fact that every year the industry is dramatically shrinking is surely not only because of the effect of the economic slowdown. There must also be some causes inherent in the structure of the system. The negative effect of the poor sales of music CDs is not as big as all that. The reduction in the size of the karaoke market is a much more serious factor. According to data released by the Japan Karaoke Operators Association, the "karaoke population" (the number of people who participate in karaoke) reached a peak of 58.9 million in 1994, but since then has been steadily declining, to sink to 48 million in 2001. It is true that this is indeed partly because young people who now have less spending money no longer go to karaoke boxes as often as they used to. However, I believe that this decrease is also the natural penalty to be paid by the music world for its inability to make songs that are suitable for adults for such a long period of time.
Middle-aged and Older People as a Potential Market The stated purpose of the survey conducted annually by the Japan Record Association is "the analysis of market structure divided by age group and market trends." However, the age groups referred to are limited to only six: "junior high school students," "senior high school students," "university students," "people in their 20s," "people in their 30s," and "people aged 40 to 55." There is not even a survey category for anyone aged 56 or older. I wonder if the premise behind this idea is the belief that the middle-aged and the elderly do not listen to music. Yet in the year 2000 the population aged 56 or above numbered 36.97 million, or 29% of the total. It seems a real waste to ignore this potential market, and it also reveals the arrogance of those people in the music business who have been poisoned by mega-hits.