I close my eyes any time I catch myself looking on songs I know well.
It's a good habit to break, especially as many older karaoke tracks have incorrect lyrics, which I find incredibly disruptive.
I might glance at the first few words just to make sure I'm on the right verse, but I otherwise don't look at the screen at all.
You should practice singing the song with your back to the display.
Or buy or make the instrumental version and play it on device with no display.
One other thing I do is sing the song to myself with no music. Once I can do that I know I'm ready to sing it without the words.
It's like riding a bike. Balance and pedal with the music, and occasionally look down at the handlebars for the words.
You can experiment too with a super familiar song. Try holding out some words or skipping phrases to start early, end early, or end late.
Turn your back on the screen, step in front of it, look instead at a few points around the building, or glance around at people watching your performance
I glance at the screen from time to time to make sure I'm starting the right verse or if I forget a line, but mostly try to connect with audience members. Helps to have friends in the audience!
Close your eyes, feel YOUR song.
Pretend it's your song like you wrote the lyrics. Best thing about karaoke is you don't have to know the words to know the song, if that makes sense. Half of the actual musicians now and days don't know all the words to their own songs lol.
If you keep the energy the crowd will help you. (A good KJ should help you but not always the case)
It's ok to glance the words to find your place but if you can step past the monitor or put your back to it.
At the of end the day just have fun!!! I've been to probably over a hundred karaoke bars at this point and my fav people to watch are the ones having the fun with their song.
Eye contact with the crowd helps, but this isn't needed. It's not a pro performeance.
I generally look at the screen for rhythm prompts in long breaks and to remember how verses start, but that's pretty much it. But I have a ridiculous memory for song lyrics - I still remember every word to 2000-era one hit wonder "Freestyler" by Bombfunk MCs, a song I haven't done at karaoke in at least 10 years and might have only heard three times in the same period.
I close my eyes any time I catch myself looking on songs I know well. It's a good habit to break, especially as many older karaoke tracks have incorrect lyrics, which I find incredibly disruptive. I might glance at the first few words just to make sure I'm on the right verse, but I otherwise don't look at the screen at all.
I guess I've got to just make a conscious effort NOT to "sing along with the lyrics" - not easy for me.
You can also ask the KJ to turn off the display for you.
You should practice singing the song with your back to the display. Or buy or make the instrumental version and play it on device with no display. One other thing I do is sing the song to myself with no music. Once I can do that I know I'm ready to sing it without the words.
Thank you - I will start practicing online but avoid looking at the screen.
It's like riding a bike. Balance and pedal with the music, and occasionally look down at the handlebars for the words. You can experiment too with a super familiar song. Try holding out some words or skipping phrases to start early, end early, or end late.
Turn your back on the screen, step in front of it, look instead at a few points around the building, or glance around at people watching your performance
I glance at the screen from time to time to make sure I'm starting the right verse or if I forget a line, but mostly try to connect with audience members. Helps to have friends in the audience!
Close your eyes, feel YOUR song. Pretend it's your song like you wrote the lyrics. Best thing about karaoke is you don't have to know the words to know the song, if that makes sense. Half of the actual musicians now and days don't know all the words to their own songs lol. If you keep the energy the crowd will help you. (A good KJ should help you but not always the case) It's ok to glance the words to find your place but if you can step past the monitor or put your back to it. At the of end the day just have fun!!! I've been to probably over a hundred karaoke bars at this point and my fav people to watch are the ones having the fun with their song.
Eye contact with the crowd helps, but this isn't needed. It's not a pro performeance. I generally look at the screen for rhythm prompts in long breaks and to remember how verses start, but that's pretty much it. But I have a ridiculous memory for song lyrics - I still remember every word to 2000-era one hit wonder "Freestyler" by Bombfunk MCs, a song I haven't done at karaoke in at least 10 years and might have only heard three times in the same period.
It's not a concert. You don't need to make eye contact with the audience. They are not there to see you.
Many ARE there to see you. Improving your performances is part of the game.