posted
I was just wondering what jobs people have, especially people who are KJs by night, like me. Is there any correlation between us all? i.e. do KJs all have similar day jobs etc? Here are some of my details. If anyone else would like to add theirs, then I would be interested to read them...
Name: Bose (Joe) Age: 21 Location: Kingston-Upon-Hull, England Day Job: Aircraft Technician for BAE Systems KJ Details: Sole trader, with own company (Zoom Entertainments) www.zoom-entertainments.co.uk Don't bother looking on it, because it's naff at the moment.
What does everyone else do, job-wise?
Bose
Posts: 342 | From: Hull, England, Great Britain | Registered: May 2000
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posted
This is my sole occupation. I don't really NEED a job. My husband works with me and is a Staff Software Engineer for an internet company and makes the real money - mine's just chicken scratch. He frequently wishes he could just do the karaoke full time, but there is no way we could make anywhere near the same kind of money.
posted
I am a full time KJ. My sole income is derived from my company as a sole proprietorship. I don't know how you manage to function in the nightlife of the entertainer and work another job. Kudos for all who do, that seems much harder than life as a full time KJ.
My income is NOT chicken scratch here where the cost of living is cheap. I could not find a day job making what I do here on the gulf coast. I am truley fortunate to be able to make a living doing karaoke.
I spent a lot of sleepless nights when I first got into business for myself after being out of the job market for so long. Even though I didn't finish and get my degree, I do think the business management major did help me.
Age: 45 ........ married 15 years - Steve (retired) ........ mother of 2 - ..................... girl 19 in college ..................... boy 12 in 6th grade
Details: Singer KJ helper since early 90's ......... In biz since 4/1/'97 ......... I have large librayed/multiple rigs
Karaoke occupies most of my time after home and children since it is my full time livlihood. I am always fine tuning tweaking things, reinvesting in my business.
Posts: 542 | From: Mobile, Alabama, USA | Registered: Jan 2000
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Fifteen years ago, my hubby made over $3000 a month - He's a software wizard and in much demand. No way, I can compete with his income - but I sure can live well. I have my own (really nice) house and maintain it on my income, kind of a pet project. I can support myself rather well on my own. It's all relative.
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I am not a "full time" KJ but I do run shows two to four nights a week Name: Ed Gallagher Age : 40 Business: K-S E Enterprises Location: Pocono Mountains in Pa Married 12 years , wife Karin owns/operates veterinary practice 1 daughter Erin age 3 I own a microcomputer / network consulting business as my full time job. We have two KJ rigs with 10000 + cuts each and 1 combo dj/kj rig with about 3000 songs for private parties. On nights with single bookings we carry about 19,000 cuts. I run shows thursday-saturday and have 7 hosts/engineers that also operate shows for/with me. We began operations in 1994 and have one venue that has just completes its 6th year of continuous operation 2 nights a week.
[This message has been edited by egkse (edited December 23, 2000).]
Posts: 64 | From: Saylorsburg, Pa USA | Registered: Sep 1999
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I've got two sets of equipment (except discs) purely to make me life easier so I don't have to do a lot of transporting. I've got nearly 5000 songs, and I've got the most in the city as far as I know. I'm tempted to get another set of discs so I can have both rigs out at once, but I reckon I'd be better off copying my existing discs and using those at private parties. The chances of getting caught are very low here.
(Just winding BC up).
Bose
Posts: 342 | From: Hull, England, Great Britain | Registered: May 2000
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Well, I can't deny that. About 50% of my karaoke discs are Sunfly. The quality is not brilliant as you say, but the discs are all full of popular songs. If Sound Choice made lots of discs which were suitable for the British people, then I would gladly buy them. But at the moment when you buy a monthly Sunfly, you get another one free with it, so it's two for the price of one. Also, hardly anyone here likes country music so most of your discs would never get used. That's why all the Sound Choice discs I have are the 70s/80s ones, plus the free 9 ones I got when I bought a Vocopro player.
Bose
Posts: 342 | From: Hull, England, Great Britain | Registered: May 2000
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Haven't done alot of posting here, but since your polling....
NAME: Rahn AGE: 31 BUSINESS: The Karaoke Smokey LOCATION: Central PA
Married with 2 kids, 6 & 7 years-old.
Karaoke is a part-time profession. I do 2-3 shows per week. I have one weekly venue on thursday nights and book weekends in between.
My full-time job is as a State Trooper here in PA.(No bootlegs here BC... ) Full-time job & kids make it tough to do more than three shows a week. These thursday nighters are gonna kill me! Oh well, only 16 more years to retirement!
egkse...I'll have to see if I can catch one of your shows sometime. Live about an hour from the Poconos.
Posts: 49 | From: Valley View, PA USA | Registered: Apr 2000
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Name: Don Age: 40 Location: Barnegat NJ Day Job: Job planner at a nuclear power plant KJ Details: Work 2 nights a week, Thursday and Friday, at local pubs. I also DJ weddings and parties and such, which is a bigger entity than karaoke for me.
------------------ It's not just karaoke... It's Harry Karaoke!
Posts: 123 | From: Ocean County, NJ, USA | Registered: Jun 2000
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Hey Djdon, do you work at the same plant as Homer Simpson?
By the way, what do electrical plugs look like in America? My parents are coming to CA next year and want to borrow my camcorder, but I need to know what adapter will be required. We have 3 pin plugs in a pyramid formation. (240V) What are US ones like?
Bose
Posts: 342 | From: Hull, England, Great Britain | Registered: May 2000
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Years as KJ: 1+ also starting to do a little DJing, alot easier, but not as much fun
Location: NE South Dakota
System: Vocopro mixer, Sony 300 & 200 disc Changers, Peavey amps, JBL & EV speakers, EV & Shure Mics.
Library : 3000 and growing
I play 3-6 nights a month, which is about enough as my day job is 60 hrs a week. I have thought about KJing fulltime, but I think I want to keep it as a fun sideline. I have 3 shows this weekend, so it will give me a better idea of what fulltime would be like
Posts: 70 | From: Clark, SD, USA | Registered: Mar 2000
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Age: 27 Location: The bootheel of Missouri Venues: casino sports bar and a small good ole' boys type bar in Tennessee
My day job is actually a night job. I'm a forklift driver in the shipping dept. of a magazine printing company. On the side I run my own PC repair/website design business.
Since I work a 12 hour night shift + overtime nights, I usually have only 1 night each week to karaoke. Though I'm not technically a KJ yet, I'm slowly learning how. Have been singing for about a year and a half. I help the regular KJ's at the places I frequent to setup & tear down (more work than most singers realize! - got into this side of it helping a DJ friend back in high school/jr. college). I also take over for one of my KJ friends when she needs a break or has to leave early etc.
[This message has been edited by ChongWang (edited January 05, 2001).]
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My wife and I share the responsibility in our business. We do two to three nights a week, and my day job is customer service rep for a Lab management software company. If Exxon, Dow, or Pfizer is checking the quality of their product, one or more of their labs is running the software I support. Yep - my day job is to listen to people complain for 8+ hours per day. Then, we go to a bar and listen to more people complain about the song list, volume, key, or anything else. Wouldn't trade it for the world, though - it's a lot of fun and a good second income. And yes - it can make going to work in the morning rough, but not unbearable. Karaoke is a lot of fun if you take it in the way it is intended to be taken in, and always remember your primary goal - have a good time and make sure your patrons have a good time. If you do that, you're in like Flynn.
Posts: 22 | From: Baton Rouge, LA | Registered: Sep 2000
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Name: Kurt Woloch Age: 29 Location: Vienna, Austria Job: I'm a programmer at the "Bundesrechenzentrum", which is a governmental organisation doing all types of computer jobs for the government. Side Job: Playing keybord and singing in the duo "Kurt & Franz"; rarely doing Karaoke...
Posts: 428 | From: Vienna, Austria, Europe | Registered: Apr 1999
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) Full-time job & kids make it tough to do more than three shows a week. These thursday nighters are gonna kill me! Oh well, only 16 more years to retirement!
