My experience with karaoke in Asia has been limited to private, exclusive gatherings conducted in small rooms with drink service, which sounds shady, but really is not. Renting a private space in a karaoke club offers a lot of perks. The only people in the rotation are friends. And the shy don't have to muster impossible courage to sing in front of a room full of strangers. These private karaoke rooms are by no means limited to Asia. Two of the best birthday parties I've been to in ten years have been made possible by a reserved room in New York City, an endless playlist, and the caterwauling of close friends that only ended at closing time.
However, the private karaoke room is not the best karaoke gimmick ever. It is silk flowers, arranged in a haphazard bouquet at cafe tables in a dark room as waiters breeze by carrying drinks on trays atop three fingers--silk flowers, with 10,000 đồng notes rolled up and tucked inside--silk flowers, passed from audience member to singer in appreciation and admiration for a good voice, or a good attempt--then silk flowers, deposited in a basket at the foot of the stage and collected as tips for the incredible live band that accompanies the singers with a broad spectrum of Vietnamese tunes and western standards. Oh yeah, a live band. That's a nice touch for karaoke too.
But the silk flowers, they are the best karaoke gimmick ever, for sure.
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