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Dawn Michelle Photography |
Karaoke Rules
January 2009 |
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Karaoke Rules
I love to dress up. You wouldn't know that if the only time you see me is during the week, especially if I'm walking my son to school in the morning. The big dress-up event for me each year is my husband's company holiday party. I worked at the same company as a software engineer for 12 years so I know a lot of people there and it's always fun for me to see old friends again.
One of the events at the last several parties has been Karaoke. I actually sang once, a duet with a friend who sings extremely well. Probably not the greatest idea I ever had but it was fun. I learned a lot singing that time and one other time, on a family cruise last year. But, it's as an observer that I've learned the most about how to be successful at singing Karaoke if you - like me - don't sing very well:
- Choose an up-tempo song. Ballads will bore your audience unless you have a voice that will knock their socks off.
- Sing songs that you know very, very well and look at the monitor so that you don't sing things like "There's a bathroom on the right" instead of "There's a bad moon on the rise". Check out www.kissthisguy.com for other funny misheard lyrics.
- Choose a song from an artist who doesn't sing that well. Yeah, you read that correctly. Not everyone who makes a million bucks on an album is necessarily a good singer. But I will keep my foot out of my mouth and not name anyone in particular.
- If you are a man, avoid falsetto at all costs. OK, if you sing like Barry Gibb or something, I guess it's OK. But many people don't want to be reminded of the Bee Gees so it's still best to avoid it.
- If you don't sing that well, sing a duet with someone who does sing well. Be sure one person sings harmony so you don't throw the whole thing off and make your great-singing friend sound like an American Idol reject.
- If you're at a company party and want to really make a statement, sing "Baby Got Back". This actually happened one year at a company party and, I must say, it was an unforgettable performance. The funniest part was watching all the older folks watching the young guy who was singing it. Please note, however, that this is probably not the kind of statement you want to make.
- Choose a song that the audience knows. They may even sing along or clap their hands. This is a good thing and will make you feel like a great performer because you have involved your audience. Also, the audience can actually help you if you can't find the beat and get lost in your song.
- Ladies, take off your high heeled shoes before you go on stage. Your legs may be shaking and you sure don't want to fall at any time before, during, or after your performance. (Remember the movie, "P.S., I Love You"?)
- Don't do any outrageous dance moves while you sing.
- Sing with confidence. It will make almost anyone sound better. After all, most of this is about bravery and a whisperer doesn't sound very brave. Own it!
I know what you are thinking. Why the heck is she talking about Karaoke when this is a photography newsletter? Well, for one, we don't need to always be so serious. But, another reason is that in photography, like Karaoke, sometimes you learn a lot by just observing the bad (and good) things people do. So look at other people's work on the web and in books. What do you like about the photo? What do you dislike? How might you have improved it? I look at a lot of other people's work to get new ideas. Sometimes, I look at another artist's portrait and ask them how they got a certain effect. This has caused me to spend a lot of money on new software, but it has been worth it.
Have any Karaoke stories? I'd love to hear them. Happy New Year! Hope to see you this year.
Dawn
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