• August 1, 2022

The origin of karaoke

Karaoke is a popular form of entertainment often used at parties, restaurants, and bars where someone sings along to recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The singer can choose from a number of popular pop and rock songs available on the machine, and then sing while the machine plays the song, without the lead vocal. A video screen shows the lyrics of the song and guides the singer, usually by changing the color of the words or using a moving symbol to get them to sing on cue. The songs can be performed by an individual or by a whole group at the same time and the result can be very entertaining.

The word “karaoke” comes from two Japanese words: “kara”, which means empty, and “okesutora”, which means orchestra. There are disputes as to where karaoke was actually invented, but it is believed that it was first developed in Japan in the 1970s before spreading to other parts of Asia in the 1980s and then to the rest of the world. Karaoke developed from the Japanese practice of providing some form of musical entertainment to guests at dinners or parties. Some guests asked a popular Japanese musician who performs at such events, Daisuke Inoue, to provide a recording of his music so they could sing during the holidays. This sparked an idea in Daisuke and he made a machine that would play a song for a 100 yen coin, renting the machines to restaurants and hotels where it became a popular form of entertainment. However, Daisuke Inoue did not patent his new machine, so there has been some dispute over who invented karaoke. A Filipino inventor named Roberto del Rosario developed a similar system called “Minus-One” in 1975 for which he obtained a patent in the 1980s. Roberto still holds the patent for what we call the karaoke machine.

Following this, the 1990s saw the popularity of karaoke spread to the United States, Canada, Australia, and other Western countries. It became a popular form of nightclub entertainment with some venues equipped with high-end sound equipment, light shows and dance floors. It also became popular to rent a karaoke machine with a horseman to come and provide entertainment at private parties. While this seemed like a fad from the ’90s, it continued to develop into a different format with karaoke now available as video games, on cell phones, on computers, and even in cars. People now have several different outlets for their amateur singing practice and entertainment.

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