Connected by Karaoke Q&A with Sean Francis

At karaoke, it’s not what your voice can offer the crowd, it’s what you can offer.

If getting by on personality were an activity, it would be karaoke. 

At karaoke, it’s not what your voice can offer the crowd, it’s what you can offer. My most memorable performances didn’t happen because I hit a high note, they happened because I fully surrendered to the music. 

I can’t remember the first karaoke song I did or where I sang it. What I remember is instantly feeling accepted. I challenged that acceptance, tackling songs I knew I couldn’t handle and was still accepted. I kept waiting for an audience that didn’t clap and I still haven’t found one. Because at karaoke, nobody is a bad singer. 

After nearly two decades of karaoke-ing under my belt, I’ve learned trial and error is your friend. Some songs work with your voice and others don’t, and the only way to find out is to get on that stage. 

Through some very humbling trial and error, I’ve discovered I excel in two music genres:

• White women attempting to rap

• Punk 

These are where my talents begin and end. 

And that’s OK because there is an unsaid respect for anyone willing to put themselves out there. There is a desire to be entertained that is only heightened by cheers and high-fives. When the singer gets off track, the audience lifts them back up. It is a symbiotic relationship fueled by being human.  

The Karaoke King

Sean Francis dressed as Cap’m Seanster

Nobody understands karaoke’s joy better than my friend, Sean Francis, who performs at a level I have yet to see replicated.

Sean frequents the local karaoke bars (Fulton Street Pub being the preference) weekly, often multiple times a week. While many people in the crowd are familiar with Sean’s ability to take the night to a new level, there is always a Sean Francis virgin in the crowd, unaware of their forthcoming life change. 

Sean is particularly known for his karaoke mashups, where he requests one song and sings another. It’s a move that always surprises the crowd and never gets old for regular audience members. 

I met with Sean to discuss all things karaoke, and why it’s so important to him. 

Conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

We’re here because you are very good at karaoke.

I was thinking about it and you are the first person I ever did adult karaoke with.

Really!? 

Yeah, you set the bar high. You were doing… was “Whip My Hair” a thing then?

It was!

OK, because I distinctly remember you doing “Whip My Hair.” You did that and you did “Hollaback Girl” and I was like, ‘Oh man, she is going all out. She doesn’t care.’ I mean, we literally just got back from Pitchfork, which was hipster central.

Oh yeah, everyone was caring there. 

Just… ‘I’m gonna sing this Willow Smith song and not worry about anyone judging me,’ and that was awesome. So, that was my ‘this is what karaoke can be’ moment.

Wow, I didn’t know that. 

Yeah, so this is a very full-circle moment.

What I love about karaoke is the inclusivity because nobody, unless you’re being an asshole, is going to get booed. 

Yeah. …I think in karaoke, there’s no such thing as a bad singer, it’s just a person who hasn’t found their song yet. You don’t have to be a great singer to be great at karaoke. You just have to find the right song that fits you and your personality. And if you’re tone-deaf and can’t sing, pick a Cake song. 

I feel like if someone’s having a hard time, that’s…

When people come out to support them more! 

Let’s talk about mashups, which you are best known for. 

I can pinpoint it to the spring or summer of 2014 when Neil Cicierga’s Mouth Sounds came out. He’s done four or five mash-up albums and in the first one, the concept was how many songs can you mash up with “All Star” by Smash Mouth? And he explores that idea to its fullest, really. 

Video care of @fauxshizzle

Did you use that as your North Star?

Yeah, I literally was just, ‘This would be the perfect thing to do at karaoke.’ There was no real manipulation to it. Once I did that a few times and it was successful then I just started collecting other ones, and once you hear enough of them, you know what works and what doesn’t. 

I remember one time you stopped the DJ because you needed to run out to your car and get your captain’s hat. Why is that hat so important?

(Laughs) I have worked to ease up on the hat. There was a time when it really felt like I had cultivated this persona and I felt like it wasn’t a complete performance. If Superman didn’t have his cape, per se. That became a thing in and of itself. 

Yeah, because you’re Cap'm Seanster. Did that happen because of the hat?

The hat came second. It was an idea my friend had come up with which was an improvised episode of a sitcom. We did one episode where we were playing versions of ourselves back in high school … and I decided to be like Urkel when he turned into Stefan on Family Matters. 

The Seanster is the cool version of my normal character. So, I started doing that character at karaoke. On a whim one summer I started wearing the hat and that just got added to the Seanster, and it evolved into Cap'm Seanster and now it has become a thing.

And now you have to run out to the car!

Sometimes, I want to lie down and not be the Cap'm. I don’t come out guns a-blazin' with the captain's hat. It has to be a certain kind of night. You can tell the energy, you know when they want to hear from the Cap'm. 

You’re a performer. You are in theater, you’re heavily involved in comedy. Why is it important to you to bring joy to others? 

I’ve always been a little ham. I would do bits to make my parents laugh and that expanded out from there. It feels good to be able to say “I made someone’s night.” I’ll still have people who come up to me if I’m not in character, they’ll say “Are you gonna do your thing tonight?” So, obviously, that’s a great feeling. … I think it's one of those things where you have to be in the right place at the right time to catch the Cap'm in action.

Sean’s top karaoke picks:

Smash Mouth, “All Star” 

Harvey Danger, “Flagpole Sitta” 

Nina, “99 Luftballons”

Big Country, “In a Big Country”

Johnny Clegg, Savuka, “Dela” 

Murray Head, “One Night in Bangkok”

Peter Gabriel, “Sledgehammer”

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, “Don’t Come Around Here No More”

Cheap Trick, “Surrender” 

Little River Band, “Lady”

Lindsay’s top karaoke picks: 

The Stooges, “Search and Destroy” 

Danzig, “Mother”

Blondie, “One Way Or Another”

No Doubt, “Excuse Me Mr.”

Fergie, “London Bridge”

Willow Smith, “Whip My Hair”

Gwen Stefani, “Hollaback Girl”

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