FIRST PERSON: AN INSIDER'S VIEW
Local Karaoke Nights
by Veronica Seda
Issue date: 2/1/10 Section: First Person
Anyone with the appetite for crooning can do karaoke any night of the week in The Bronx, where a variety of venues all have a pulse. These ecosystems have developed according to their Karaoke Night's length of existence, and the K.J. (karaoke deejay) popularity. Last month, for example, I received a text message at about 9pm: Are you available tomorrow night? Hesitant, after dealing with a Thanksgiving disaster, general stress, and lack of rest, I handed my cherry red Blackberry over to Rob. We both knew we can use the extra cash, so we agreed to do the gig. Besides, it's always been difficult for us to say "no" to karaoke.
We actually met on a karaoke night in December of 05, and have been inseparable ever since. Little by little, we put together our own system, and host together once in a while. We've hosted Karaoke Night at the Redwood Club three times: a place that has been struggling to lure customers due to their desolate location at the end of Throggs Neck, and their inconsistent karaoke schedule.
Getting a crowd- at the last minute, out to the edge of the Bronx, on a holiday weekend, is doubtful. Still, Rob and I jump on our cell phones, calling and forwarding text messages to everybody we know. We open our e-mails and send the word to every contact. We log onto Facebook and invite every "friend" to the event.
This particular spot is not the average bar. It's a "club", like an American Legion, where people from the neighborhood are members, and rent it out for birthday parties and stuff. When you get there, it looks like a trailer home. Once you walk in, you get hit with the smell of cigarettes from the bar to the right. To the left- a short corridor leads to a spacious room, with about a dozen eight-foot-long grey Sterilite tables, split in two neat rows on both sides of the room. A small platform stands in the front of this room, and the back wall is decorated with mirrors and a couple more tables. About eight old bronzy metal chairs surround each table, with stained cushion seats that once were patterned beige.
We actually met on a karaoke night in December of 05, and have been inseparable ever since. Little by little, we put together our own system, and host together once in a while. We've hosted Karaoke Night at the Redwood Club three times: a place that has been struggling to lure customers due to their desolate location at the end of Throggs Neck, and their inconsistent karaoke schedule.
Getting a crowd- at the last minute, out to the edge of the Bronx, on a holiday weekend, is doubtful. Still, Rob and I jump on our cell phones, calling and forwarding text messages to everybody we know. We open our e-mails and send the word to every contact. We log onto Facebook and invite every "friend" to the event.
This particular spot is not the average bar. It's a "club", like an American Legion, where people from the neighborhood are members, and rent it out for birthday parties and stuff. When you get there, it looks like a trailer home. Once you walk in, you get hit with the smell of cigarettes from the bar to the right. To the left- a short corridor leads to a spacious room, with about a dozen eight-foot-long grey Sterilite tables, split in two neat rows on both sides of the room. A small platform stands in the front of this room, and the back wall is decorated with mirrors and a couple more tables. About eight old bronzy metal chairs surround each table, with stained cushion seats that once were patterned beige.
Be the first to comment on this story