I’d done karaoke before (badly on those few occasions too), but wanted to fully embrace the bright lights, loudness and chaos of a session at Big Echo, the biggest karaoke chain in Japan! Embracing a new experience, I sang karaoke in Japan. Badly.
Very Brief History Of Karaoke In Japan
Although people have been singing along to songs for decades, the word Karaoke was used in Japan even before the karaoke machine was invented. The term was used whenever a band couldn’t be organised for a singer and so backing tracks were used instead.
The first prototype of the karaoke machine was developed in Japan in 1967. Named a ‘Sparko Box’, this coin operated machine was intended for commercial use. It used instrumental eight track cassettes and a physical booklet of lyrics.
It is Japanese musician Daisuke Inoue who we have to thank for the echo synonymous with karaoke. He created his own style of karaoke machine, – although it was never filed as a patent but has influenced future models. He recorded versions of popular songs in a different key which would make it easier for amateur singers to join in. Also, he very cleverly added the echo reverb which helped to cover up the bad singing! Genius! Although to be fair I still sounded bad even with an echo.
Video karaoke machines became popular in the 1980s and that’s when it really took off and became widely popular, (and unpopular too), as it spread around the world.
Karaoke Cringe
I had done karaoke before. Once in a pub when I was at six form college. Some friends and I did a Spice Girls song but never finished it as we were booed off stage. Yes, we really were awful
The second time was in Manchester on a hen do. That had been a far less embarrassing experience as we were in a private booth, and whilst my singing had not improved, it was a safe space to belt out some bangers.
Planting The Idea
During our travels in Japan, I had jokingly suggested to the Other Half that we should do Karaoke seeing as we were in the birthplace of the hobby. This wasn’t met with the outright ‘no’ that I had expected!
On our last evening in the country, we were drawn to the bright lights of the Big Echo, and sang karaoke (badly) in Japan
Soundproof Booth
Thankfully we had our own booth as I’m pretty sure we’d have been booted out or left people with bleeding ears if it had been public!
It had seats, two microphones, a tablet for selecting songs, a big screen, lights and of course speakers.
Echo, Echo, Echo
These microphones were not just amplifiers. No, as if inflicting my singing voice on others at a louder volume wasn’t enough punishment, there was the added echo quality too. Not like the gentle echo you get in a big cave, more like an instant blast. As though you’re in an empty tiled bathroom.
Video-Tastic
The videos that went with the songs were so bad they were good. There were no official music videos to any of the tracks we picked. Instead, re-created footage had been captured in what looked like the 1990s judging by the outfits and camera quality. It was an utter joy to see how bizarely lyrics were interpreted into visuals.
Going For A Song - Karaoke In Japan
The choice of songs was very impressive, we found everything we wanted to massacre, sorry, I mean, sing along to!
Some big tunes were sung, from artists including; Tina Turner; Phil Collins; A-ha (of course); Daft Punk; Human League; Snoop Dogg; Eminem; Toto; Cher; Bon Jovi; Vanilla Ice and Ultravox. Classics!
Tone Deaf
I am not for one minute implying that I can hold a tune when I say this, but blimey the Other Half was a bad singer! I’d never heard him sing before – not in the shower, not singing along in the car, not joining in at Glastonbury where there are enough other people belting out the lyrics that it usually drowns the bad voices out.
What he lacked in dulcet tones though he more than made up for with enthusiasm – which was a surprise as I had definitely been the one who was more excited for this.
Singing Karaoke In Japan - A Hilarious Experience
It was brilliant fun!! No live footage shall ever be shared. I’d like to say it’s because it would blow all other singers out of the water, but I’m pretty sure we’d all know it’s the total opposite!
We were certain we must have been turfed out of our booth too early. Surely we hadn’t been in there for the ninety minutes we had booked? Indeed, we had. The hilariousness of attempting to hit the high notes. Chin tucks as we attempted to hit the low notes. Desperate inhalations of breath as we attempted to rap. The exceptionally naff videos. It had been an hour and a half of ridiculousness.
With croaky voices, we agreed it had been great fun. It wasn’t something we would regularly partake in, but it had been a very entertaining evening together.
Singing is good for us for so many reasons. Laughing is good for us too. What a great way to get a big boost of both.
Want To Try It Yourself?
- If you ever take a trip to Japan, you won’t struggle to find somewhere to try karaoke in the birthplace of this entertainment.
- There are lots of different karaoke outlets. We went to Big Echothe biggest karaoke shop chain in Japan.
- Big Echo has long opening hours, 11am-3am on weekends!
- There are karaoke bars in almost every city across the world so you should be able to find somewhere near you.
- You can download apps so you can give it a go from the comfort of your living room – maybe let the neighbours know first though!
Cost Of Experience
The cost will depend on where and when you try karaoke.
Big Echo has different pricing options. It’s more expensive after 7pm.
Big Echo also serve food and drink so you can make a full night of it at extra cost.
We went for the all you can drink option over 90 minutes, (we wanted something to take the edge off!). This was 2,480 yen per person, which converted to £13.50 in April 2023.
Recommendations
- It is a whole other level of entertainment if you try karaoke in public, so you may want to find somewhere where you have a private booth to warble away in.
- Just go with it! There’s no right or wrong when it comes to karaoke!
- Sing like no one can hear you – they can’t if you’re in a booth – only anyone else who is in there with you!
- Have fun, why not pick a song that no-one would expect?
- Don’t forget to get some pictures!