Karaoke--Extremely Popular at Asia Cafe

According to Wikipedia, “There are disputes about who invented the name karaoke. Daisuke Inoue of Kobe, Japan is said to have been the first person to use a machine in which recorded music of popular tunes lacking the vocals was used in the “sing-along” style. However, in the USA from 1961–1966, the American TV network NBC carried a karaoke-like series, Sing Along with Mitch, featuring host Mitch Miller and a chorus. Viewers could sit at home in the comfort of their living rooms and sing along as the tunes played while the lyrics were superimposed near the bottom of the TV screen.”

Many families have fond memories of gathering around their TV screens for a weekly time of family fun. The primary difference between Karaoke and sing-along songs is the absence of the lead vocalist.

As newer and more high tech inventions followed, the ability for singers to sing-along to cassettes and now to cds has grown. DJs can now use machines on which thousands of tunes are stored, awaiting to be chosen by anyone who has a desire to sing karaoke style.

Karaoke became popular in the USA in the 1980s. Most recently, it has made a huge comeback. Several sites in Knoxville offer this fun style of musical performance weekly.

I dropped in one night at the Asia Café located on 6714 N. Central Pike and Callahan Road, to check out live performances of karaoke.

First, I had the preconceived notion that most karaoke singers were probably not that good. I expected to have to sit through lack-luster performances. Not the case.

On the night I attended Karaoke Night at Asia Café, DJ Darrell Wallace was deep in concentration as he prepared the loud speakers and computer equipment needed by the performers. Wallace began the night with a Travis Tritt hit, but said that his favorite singer is Bob Seger. Wallace does karaoke for fun, but also sings for weddings and performs at other special occasions.

Up next came Ralph, a retiree, who says he enjoys singing karaoke because it “gets me out of the house two times a week.” Ralph is a widower who says his daughter encouraged him to take up karaoke as a hobby. He said, “It makes me feel good and I meet nice people.”

Ralph has been singing since he attended Farragut High School where he won a talent contest. He sings mostly country songs, but will sing classic rock on occasion. He sang, “After the Lovin’” and “For the Good Times.” Ralph’s voice was smooth and he kept perfectly to the beat. He gave a great performance for which the audience clapped and cheered. He is obviously one of the Asia Café’s favorite performers.

Animal, a member of the band, “Listening Post,” sang a hard rock song, “You Give Love a Bad Name,” as Darrell Wallace joined in on the chorus.

Ken, another member of a local band, who has a beautiful voice sang “I’ll Wait for You.”

Lorida, a server at Asia Café, is also a popular singer. Members in the crowd called out to her, “Sing Whitney Houston’s song.” She sang, “I Will Always Love You,” to everyone’s delight.

Several other singers rounded out the night of fun.

Two other DJ s are hosts for karaoke at Asia Café, Big Daddy and Danny Smith. The three DJ s alternate weeks and cover both Fridays and Saturdays from 8 p.m. until around midnight. Big Daddy does more Oldies and Classic Rock, while Danny Smith uses more country tunes. But, each of the three will play the tunes that suit the customers. All karaoke performances are free to singers and audiences.

The night ended with a big bang of what else, “Rocky Top.”

Asia Café’s owner, Phillip Lim, says karaoke is extremely popular. He invites everyone to join in on the fun each Friday and Saturday night in his restaurant.