I will always love you, karaoke! Why we Filipinos dig our mics

We'd rather belt out all numbers known to man. Apart from Frank Sinatra's My Way...

The first song I sang in a karaoke was a song by a local band about a teen's alcohol addiction. I was a child and at the age of seven, had no idea what the song was about. What drew me to sing it in front of a family gathering during New Year's Eve was the wail of the electric guitars and the ability to sing along to some popular bands. I look back at that song as my rite of passage towards the Filipino tradition of karaoke - or videoke as we call it back in the country.
One of the popular beliefs about Filipinos here in Dubai is that we are a happy bunch. This shows in our love for karaoke that has not faded even if we live 6,000 miles away from home.
Despite the many karaoke clubs across town, our culture sees this as an activity that (1) will not break the bank and (2) is as laidback and relaxing as possible. That is why many Filipino expats in the UAE buy karaoke sets for their homes. It's pretty easy to get one here - one needs only go (and haggle) with the many stores in Satwa, Deira, or Dragon Mart. It's also worth mentioning that it only takes a karaoke machine to bring families and friends together.
It's more than just the music
For many Filipinos, the karaoke serves as an outlet where we could momentarily forget our problems and just be happy. There is something about singing pop songs in the company of friends that we enjoy. Dubai expat and philosophy graduate Kieth Walter Ayuso explains, "It's our natural form of interaction. We find it easy to get along with people when we sing together." He further explains the concept of karaoke as a social tool for many Filipinos: "We are very welcoming of other people. One way to do this is to invite them for karaoke."
Karaoke (or videoke) is a natural stress reliever. On most Thursday nights, many Filipino communes around the UAE sing the night away. Forget brunch, our culture values relaxing on the couch in casual clothes, enjoying drinks with our compatriots, as we let another song play. Dulce Esquivel, a World Wildlife Fund volunteer based in the UAE says, "The party isn't complete without breaking your vocal chords with the karaoke." Breaking vocal chords!? It's because we are famous for belting out the high notes.
From Whitney Houston to Adele
Singing high-pitched songs is a characteristic of the Filipino karaoke experience. This penchant for theatrics and over-the-top performances can be seen in our many festivals spread throughout the year. In karaoke, this translates to our attempt to replicate powerhouse performers such as Whitney Houston or Air Supply. The idea is to have a laugh as we struggle - or in some cases, nail - the notes.
It's not just high-powered ballads, however, many Filipinos are also crooners. A hit that now makes its way into every karaoke playlist - Ed Sheeran's Thinking Out Loud is one of the latest to join the ranks of I Will Always Love You, Total Eclipse of the Heart, I Will Survive and Making Love Out of Nothing at All. But of the many songs Filipinos can and will sing in a karaoke, there is one song that many choose to avoid.
Sinatra's curse(?)
In the early 2000s, a local TV show (akin to CSI) had an episode where a character got killed off for singing Frank Sinatra's My Way. My grandmother explained to me that the plot was based on fact. She told me that many Filipinos meet their demise singing My Way, "Because those listening to it think that the singing is horrible". This keen observation on how a song is sung is only seen in Sinatra's song however. For the most part, we Filipinos don't mind getting the notes right for every other song.
A quick search on Google will reveal a story from the New York Times talking about the "My Way killings" which has become an urban legend. The NYT story further delves into why the Sinatra classic is fatal. According to the report: "The lyrics evoke feelings of pride and arrogance in the singer, as if you're somebody when you're really nobody. It covers up your failures. That's why it leads to fights," quoting a local music teacher on the song's notoriety.
Since then, the song has been widely banned across many karaoke clubs in the country. Some machines might still have it, but the song is wisely avoided by the many Filipinos around the world.
It's the culture of 'happy time'
Urban legends aside, karaoke and Filipinos are inseparable. The ubiquitous machine is more closely associated to us than to its Japanese inventors.
We love it not because all of us can sing well, but because the karaoke doesn't judge us - it lets us express ourselves in the way we are most comfortable. It serves as our unbiased outlet of emotions and our escape from whatever problems we may have. Across the UAE and around the globe, a Filipino household is not complete without a karaoke machine; because after all, "Paano na ang happy time niyan?" (and in English, for the rest: "What happens with happy time now?")
Presenting a (pink) karaoke machine
If you want one of these, get a bluetooth-powered machine, the size of an iPhone with an attached microphone. You won't need TV as Youtube's ahead of the game. They  have karaoke versions of popular songs. Just connect wirelessly and sing to your heart's content, anywhere-ee... !
Keith has stage fright, but on at least one occasion, he's belted out Hey Jude on stage
keith@khaleejtimes.com