The
inventor of karaoke, Shigeichi Negishi
,
died at 100 years old
.
Although his creation became an attraction that became popular in the world and remains to this day, this man of Japanese origin
did not become a millionaire.
According to reports, this man who was born in 1923 in
Tokyo, Japan
, died on January 29, but the news only spread a few hours ago.
How karaoke was invented
After
a friend heard him sing at work and made fun of him
, Negishi, who grew up as the director of an electronics company, thought the solution would be to be able to sing, but with music as accompaniment, reports
The Daily Mail
.
So in
1967
he presented his first karaoke machine.
His name was
Sparko Box
, which led other companies to create different types of equipment.
It turned out to be an ideal trigger for copies.
A curious fact, something that usually happens in the face of new technology phenomena, is that when their new device came out,
professional singers feared that it would leave them without a job.
After the Sparko Box was released, other manufacturers made their own versions and
musician Daisuke Inoue released the 8 Juke box four years later in 1971, often credited as the first.
However, the
Japan Karaoke Industrial Association
recognized the Sparko Box as the first karaoke, highlighting that it paved the way for its auspicious present in the world of entertainment at meetings, private parties or discos.
Karaoke.
One of the first machines to sing on tracks.
Why he invented karaoke and didn't make millions
Although his idea caused a craze across the planet, Negishi did not make millions because he
never patented the invention.
Not only that, but he even stopped manufacturing the Sparko Box because
"he got tired of the conflict with musicians and the routine of door-to-door sales
," according to specialized media.
But
his daughter Atsumi Takano
confessed that she was happy to know that her idea had become something she enjoyed so much.
"He felt great pride in seeing his idea evolve into a
culture of fun
through songs around the world. For him, spending 100 years surrounded by his family was reward enough," he concluded.
What is the origin of the word karaoke
“Karaoke” is a neologism and its origin is related to the Takarazuka Kagekidan theater company,
Nippon.com reports.
And remember that in 1956, the performances were on the verge of being suspended as a result of a
strike by the members of the orchestra.
Farewell to another legend: Shigeichi Negishi, inventor of karaoke, has died age 100. By automating the sing-along, he earned the authority of performers who saw his machine as a threat to their jobs.
It's an eerie precursor of the debate surrounding AI's impact on artists today.
pic.twitter.com/ZOpLdSisb2
— Matt Alt (@Matt_Alt) March 14, 2024
To avoid this, the theater company asked the electronics firm Matsushima for tapes with music and the necessary equipment to play them.
The performances went off without a hitch, but the orchestra pit was left empty.
In Japanese, it was a kara no okebokkusu (empty orchestra pit), expanded from Japan.
The million-dollar karaoke industry
According to the
2020 Karaoke White Paper
, the year before the coronavirus pandemic, the size of the karaoke industry market was distributed as follows:
Bars:
represented 151.3 billion yen.
Karaoke box, single rooms with karaoke
: 379.8 billion yen
Tourist buses, banquet halls and welfare institutions
: 45.6 billion yen.
Karaoke is all the rage around the world.
In total, the sum was approximately
576.5 billion yen.
But other points should also be taken into account:
Sales of content makers:
70 billion yen.
Content distribution:
at 272.7 billion yen.
If you add income from karaoke for
smartphones, car navigators and televisions with Internet
, the total of industries related to this entertainment could have reached a size of
one trillion yen