ICHIYA’s POP Eye – Karaoke

 From Kyary Pamyu Pamyu Moshi Moshi Nippon’s “ICHIYA’s POP EYE”.
  Today’s topic is Karaoke!
  Karaoke, Japan's biggest invention. Since it's creation 30 years ago it has spread around the whole world. Songs are provided via transmission, so many songs from around the world can be sung.
  There is a service where the machine gives points for your singing-skills and ranks them across the whole country. You know where your song is ranked on a national scale. You can even record your song on a CD. Using a camera, you can sing a duet with somebody anywhere in the country.
  There are some Karaoke shops where you can sing in school uniforms or maid costumes, or say famous lines out of Anime. Weird, isn't it?
  Karaoke has already been combined with the latest technology and evolved. In the past, songs have been sung with live performances of guitars or pianos in bars, but in the 1970s performances on tape appeared. In the 1980s the Laser disc was invented and videos were added to karaoke. In the 1990s, transmission karaoke emerged. Tens of thousands of songs could be provided, even if the store didn't have any discs.
  Then, the number of karaoke shops with private rooms rapidly increased in Japan's cities. People enter soundproof private rooms in groups and enjoy karaoke while they eat & drink. There are even karaoke shops, which make tasty food their selling point. At other karaoke shops, you can bring your own food & drinks and have fun with karaoke for only a few $. There are services to go to karaoke with children as well, where toys are provided. It's just like home.
  Many business people use private karaoke boxes as meeting rooms. That's because it is a private room, has drinks, is quite because it is soundproof and the seats are good as well. Another way of usage is to gather with friends not to sing karaoke, but to watch a movie. On the other hand, karaoke shops with one-person boxes are getting more and more popular as well. Thare is a karaoke service where you can bring your own guitar and practice. There are many ways to do karaoke.
  Since Japanese people are very shy, it's often said that one does not know what they are thinking. However, at karaoke they are very excited. That's strange, isn't it?
  At one TV show, we took a portable karaoke machine onto the streets and asked people if they'd sing. While most foreigners said "no", 80% of Japanese people said yes, and did sing.
  I expected the opposite result and was very surprised.
  Japanese people are certainly used to singing in front of other people since they were children. Music lessons are also substantial.
  In contrast, Japanese people don't usually present their opinion on political or social problems. The hurdle to sing seems to be a lot lower than the hurdle to make one self's opinion clear and worry what the other will think about oneself.
  Anyway. Rather than thinking about something this difficult, let's go to karaoke and have a blast!