Divas!
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Karaoke in Japan is not a drunken stumble on to a stage to murder a song in front of an audience. It is a way to let out emotions that you would otherwise be expected to hide. A way to sing through your anger, your heart-ache, your joy, your sadness, your love.
You hire a room and with a small group can perform to your contentment (often with beer flowing). The thing is...karaoke is not about the drink, not about being drunk. For the Japanese it is all about the song. You sing as well as you can, not to make an exhibitionist of yourself. (Kitty is laughing at Rhod's rendition of Macy Gray in the photos).
My friend Kate used to slip away at lunch-time for a coffee and a sing at her local parlour, practising and releasing all the tension and anger of the day in a burst of ballad singing. Others of my Japanese friends often spent their high school days rehearsing certain songs they could later feel confident enough to sing in front of a group. So it should come as no surprise that Kitty (barely 2 years old) already has a repertoire of songs for karaoke. In fact her handling of a microphone puts me to shame. That she should know the word microphone in her limited vocabulary is very, very endearing. Because I see so many kids in my work I really don't pay much attention. Yet I guarantee you Kitty's rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow would melt your heart. Sleep finally takes down Kitty in these pictures after amazing renditions of the Anpanman and Totoro theme songs. Rhod crooned his heart out to the little lass to no avail...she did not stir. It's a shame she missed her parents rapping away to a Japanese hip-hop group, but I do have it on film. |
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