An interview with a Dallas Karaoke Guy- KJ Steve Z
09/09/2007
by Amelia Borden - A Writer from Helium.com

The Karaoke Jockey, or KJ for short, is the key ingredient to making the night all fun and games or just drunken girls slurring out off-key versions of their favorite breakup revenge songs! KJ Steve Z, is not really tied down to one particular venue, but in my interview with him he spoke fondly of the British Rows Pub in Dallas, Texas. Calling himself a class "C" personality growing up, Steve Z said his only connection to karaoke in his childhood was pretty typical, just singing along to Michael Jackson and other musicians of his time.

Beginning a disc collection in California, he had acquired near 4,000 discs by the time he moved to Dallas where he now pursues his passion for karaoke six nights a week! Being a KJ you're bound to see a good mix of personalities. He recalled a tall skinny returning singer he had who thought it would be a good idea to put on a black electrical tape mustache and sing "Springtime for Hitler in Germany" (from "The Producers" soundtrack) and although he did an entertaining job, a few people were offended and left, so now as a courtesy to his audience Steve kicks out a small disclaimer before playing something that might offend "you might either want to stick your fingers in your ears and sing 'la la la' for the next four minutes or go outside and have a smoke or something." Having a background as an electrician makes his career a bit easier by giving him the basic knowledge needed to repair his own equipment, and get the best performance possible out of it. After being told that the average rate to hire a KJ at is about $100 a night, I just had to ask if you could make a living on that and still have free time! Steve takes his one night a week off to veg out, watch some TV, and enjoy his me time. He is truly passionate about what he does, making sure everybody knows when the next singer is up, and each one gets applauded!

Talking to Steve it became apparent to me that the most important thing to him is his singers and treating them all fairly. He turns down bribes to be put at the front of the list to keep everyone happy, "word gets around and you just don't want an image like that." Steve is a firm believer that it's all about fun stating that "when it becomes a job, I'll quit, but until then."

He recounted quite a few interesting stories, although most were inappropriate for publishing, but it just comes with the territory. His philosophy of karaoke is always treating the singer right, they are the most important people in the bar, but he pays close attention to more than just the singers, he tries to please everyone, "You basically have three types, the drinkers, the singers and the dancers, I want to make sure everyone is happy." He's seen all ages perform, from children to the older crowds, he said his favorite crowd was the youthful kind "because they drink more, tend to create a more exciting atmosphere, and that's good for business." I had his career summed up for me, he started at the British Rows just one night a week, is now at three, and works four bars, two up and running employees and one in training, he works six nights a week. His philosophy of karaoke is always treating the singer right, they are the most important people in the bar, but the drinkers need to be happy too.

When asked about taboo or dreaded songs people could sing, he talked about the artists whose main goal is normally to offend and shock, and how he is glad it's beginning to become less popular, because "you never know who is out in the audience and you don't want them to be offended." When people ask him 'What song should I sing?' he always replies "A song" never telling anyone what to do, because as Steve Z always says "It's just karaoke, it's about having fun." During our interview I was told way more than I can fit into this column, so if you're wanting to know more you'll have to go meet him yourself out in the Dallas area. He's commonly known around there as the karaoke guy! He makes the experience more than just a bunch of people singing to CD's, Steve Z truly makes the karaoke experience a party.