Filipinos have had a long love affair with the Karaoke/Videoke in its many forms and conceptions. As Filipinos have long been a musically-inclined people, singing is a part of their everyday lives. Singing allows them to relax, show off to others, entertain, or bond with others. It would then come to no surprise that technology that makes singing easier, livelier and more enjoyable will be welcomed with open arms into the Filipino way of life. We see a whole variety of establishment that have videoke as an attraction to their businesses or have videoke as the main attractions, like KTV restaurants and mall booths. It used to be said that whatever the family's financial status in life, every Filipino owned a TV. Now it would appear that every Filipino family has a portable videoke player so they can sing whenever they want or use it to entertain guests.
Karaoke, portmanteau of Japanese kara or "empty", and okesutora or orchestra") is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music (a music video) using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol, changing color, or music video images, to guide the singer. In some countries, a karaoke box is called a KTV. It is also a term used by recording engineers translated as "empty track" meaning there is no vocal track.
There are various disputes about who first invented the name karaoke. One claim is that the karaoke styled machine was invented by Japanese musician Daisuke Inoue in Kobe, Japan, in 1971. After becoming popular in Japan, karaoke spread to East and Southeast Asia during the 1980s and subsequently to other parts of the world.
Roberto del Rosario, a prolific Filipino inventor, independently created a music system with accompaniment and a pre-recorded vocals that could be turned up or down on a separate track. Del Rosario became famous in 1972 for his OMB (One Man Band) which could play the entire orchestra to the tune of cha-cha, boogie, and others. In 1974, del Rosario invented the Sing Along System (SAS) composed of a microphone, amplifier and system that had the innovation of adding effects to the user's voice such as reverb. The machine became known popularly in the Philippines as Minus-One (named after the subtracted vocal channel when turned down). Del Rosario's version is described as: a handy multi-purpose compact machine which incorporates an amplifier speaker, one or two tape mechanisms, optional tuner or radio and microphone mixer with features to enhance one’s voice, such as the echo or reverb to stimulate an opera hall or a studio sound, with the whole system enclosed in one cabinet casing.
Sometimes, units came with songbooks. Instead of having lyrics displayed on a screen though, Minus One users could learn the songs by turning the vocal channel up and singing along to it. Some of the cassettes for the Sing Along machines were recorded by Filipino cover bands for popular songs so that the vocals and accompaniment could be played independently. Minus one cassettes for normal stereo systems also became popular later on where vocals would be on the left channel, accompaniment on the right and vocals could be turned down by adjusting the left channel volume.
After outsourcing the production to a Japanese company for most of his replacement parts, del Rosario and his friends started seeing similar systems with Japanese names being sold in major Asian cities, even in Manila, Philippines. Del Rosario traced the source of the copies to a large Japanese manufacturer. Legal battles were fought and del Rosario won against Janito Corporation which sold a similar model called the "Miyata Karaoke". Del Rosario's patents are issued as Utility Model 5269 dated June 2, 1983 and Utility Model 6237 dated November 14, 1986. For his inventions, The World Intellectual Property Organization awarded del Rosario the Gold Medal for Best Inventor in 1985.
Karaoke soon spread to the rest of Asia and other countries all over the world. In-home karaoke machines soon followed but lacked success in the US and Canadian markets. When creators became aware of this problem, karaoke machines were no longer being sold strictly for the purpose of karaoke but as home theater systems to enhance television watching to "movie theater like quality". Home theater systems took off, and karaoke went from being the main purpose of the stereo system to a side feature.
As more music became available for karaoke machines, more people within the industry saw karaoke as a profitable form of lounge and nightclub entertainment. It is not uncommon for some bars to have karaoke performances seven nights a week, commonly with high-end sound equipment superior to the small, stand-alone consumer versions. Dance floors and lighting effects are also becoming common sights in karaoke bars. Lyrics are often displayed on multiple TV screens around the bar.
Karaoke/Videoke as a way of life in the Philippines
Filipinos are known for their love of singing and are in demand worldwide for playing in cover bands because of their ease of mimicking songs by ear. The term Karaoke only started becoming popular during the 90s when bars started adding them and using the Japanese term to cater to influx of Japanese tourists and businessmen who requested them.
KTV (Karaoke TV) on the other hand, is called Videoke by Filipinos. Many Filipino restaurants and bars local and abroad have karaoke machines which allow customers to sing. KTV bars are also popular where friends and officemates rent and sing Karaoke inside multiple soundproof rooms to allow individual groups to sing undisturbed. Karaoke is most popular during after-work as well evening celebrations, and neighbors often have to suffer loud, terrible singing into the wee hours of the morning which sometimes cause neighborly altercations.
In fact, there is a joke by Filipinos that the song by "My Way" by Sinatra is the deadliest song in the Philippines. In working class blue collar bars, fights break out due to reasons like bad singing, refusing to give up the mike and revenge for perceived insults when jeered. As the song is very popular in these bars, the song being sung when deaths occur is often "My Way". Due to the many deaths over the years, many bars and restaurants have banned the song on their premises.
Videoke exemplifies the Filipinos' sense of family, camaraderie and community, as Videoke is best done with family, relatives, friends, barkadas, and even extends to coworkers, classmates, and new acquaintances. Though individuals may feel apprehension or "hiya" at first, the audience will often give encouragement or a nudge in the right direction. The quality of the singing itself is not the focus of the activity, but is rather in the effort to share a side of one's self that is not normally seen anywhere else. This is why Videoke has become a great pastime for Filipinos, and one can suppose that in the future, when holograms or robots become incorporated into Videoke performance, Filipinos will still be there singing their hearts out to an appreciative audience.