DFW KJ Alliance Meeting – Sunday, April 23^rd @ Yucatan Beach Club, Coppell.  Meeting open with welcome and greetings followed by an introduction of the agenda and a brief description of what the DFW KJ Alliance is all about.  10 people attended representing 5 karaoke companies across DFW with three affiliated companies and quests.  Those in attendance included: Wendy White (Tiny Tunes Ent), Andi McCurdy (Tiny Tunes Ent), Christian Tatsch (Little Sister Pro), Jennie Tatsch (Little Sister Pro), Wess Petersdorf (Karaoke anonymous), Joel Gordon (Top Ent), Danny Hernandez (Danny & Jan Ent), Jan Hernandez (Danny & Jan Ent), Susan Werth (Karaoke PitStop), Jack Murray (Independent KJ), & Rob Drachler (TM Centruy).  The meeting began quickly with special guest, Rob Drachler of TM Century.  Rob handed out information packets and free demo samples to all in attendance of their product and service providing KJ/DJs with CDs or videos of the most current radio hits for their mobile libraries.  This service can be purchased on a yearly or monthly basis providing KJs with weekly updated material.  Their PrimeCuts package offers additional member services custom designed to fit the needs of every KJ/DJ service with sweepers, stagers, bits, shouts, sound effects, artist drops, and listing spread sheets for cataloging DJ libraries.  Please visit he Affiliation page for more details and contact information.  All attendees were gifted with a pass to the Southern Disc Jockey Convention at the American Airlines Training and Conference Center for Sun-Tues, April 23rd-25th, Noon-5PM.  Special Karaoke Industry Seminars to be held on Monday afternoon.  Continuing with the order of DFW KJ Alliance business, a full recap of the SCA Awards & the successful 1st Alliance Mixer held at Skillman St Pub and attendance was giving and a drawing for the next quarter mixer was held.  The next Alliance Mixer will be Sunday, June 11th at Daddy Rocks in Lewisville hosted by Tiny Tunes Entertainment from 8:00 PM until Midnight.  The President expressed concern over meeting attendance after calling the entire members and pending members lists with promissory pledges of attendance by many not present.  Members are in jeopardy of losing their Member-In-Good Standing status by missing 2 quarterly meetings per year resulting in reapplication for membership and replacement dues.  It was also announced that Denise Slay is stepping down as Alliance secretary due to her daily work increase and Alliance President Wendy White will absorb her duties until a new structured format can be voted.  Denise will continue as Treasurer with assistance from Wendy.  In addition, dues were collected and payment listings read.  No announcements were given by the Ethics Committee at this meeting, due to no new issues.  Joel Gordon of the Events Team has expressed concern of the team member involvement and has given an open invitation for assistance in planning new guest speakers and events requiring fund-raising.  Other Alliance business included a decision of the banner without the logo to save costs replacing with a new outline format decided int eh Officers meeting prior to the Alliance meeting.  Member packets are to include: Welcome letter, Mission Statement, Code of Ethics, Membership Info, Member Card, Alliance Contact List, Membership Certificate, Meeting Calendar, and Discount Info.  The DFW KJ Alliance Member of the Year will be voting in October meeting, awarded in January meeting followed by an additional acknowledgement at the Singers Choice Awards 2006 held in February 2007.  New business included the proposal and vote of moving the Alliance website off the freeserver to a real domain hosted by LilyHost a sub-company of DannSoft with the yearly expense of $200 broken into two payments bi-yearly was approved.  The next quarterly meeting will be July 16th - please be prompt and ready to begin at 3PM sharp at Yucatan Beach Club in Coppell.  Please bring a quest with you!

DFW KJ Alliance Meeting – Sunday, October 3^rd @ On The Border, Irving.  Meeting open with welcome and greetings followed by an introduction of the agenda and a brief description of what the DFW KJ Alliance is all about.  15 people attended representing 7 karaoke companies across DFW.  Treasury Dept reported a total of $24 collected before the meeting & added an additional $27 at meeting close.  It was suggested we strongly consider more fundraising ideas so we have money to begin a business account and have funds available to move quickly should we decide as a whole to participate in a marketing opportunity.  We will file the DBA in the next 2 weeks in Dallas Co.  Ethics Committee:  The Official Code of Ethics ballot were passed out & voted, results were later presented via email as a pass by majority voting.  Events Team:  Although Wendy White was not able to attend the meeting due to illness, we did pass out the Projective Calendar for 2005 showing possible high/slow seasons and special events.  We will have DFW KJ generic business cards for the next meeting – design already approved.  Guest Speaker 1:  Equipment Insurance was discussed in depth by an AllState Rep Danny Wilson - very informative.  He began by presenting facts, that Home & Auto policies would not cover loss/thief/damage to work related systems over 10% or up to $2,500.00.  A General policy would protect a business or business owner in claims against the business or owner.  There are Umbrella clauses to cover litigation in business claims that are considered hidden policies should you be sued by someone thinking they are hitting the jackpot in wealth by the size of your business or the estimate income you bring in.  The best policy to protect working systems is the Marine Inland Policy that covers property and equipment.  It covers loss/thief/damage not general ware/tear.  He also informed us the best way to file claims in general:  1) Take a picture of damaged items immediately. 2) File a police report on any stolen items immediately.  3) Keep booklets, instruction sheets, receipts, serial numbers, and a list of items you have in your system ready for emergencies.  He truthfully recommended shopping policies before making a final decision and to inventory your system to know a ball park figure on the amount of insurance you need before you begin to shop policies.  (It is a good idea to purchase a policy that will allow for your growth during the year, but not necessary to go overboard on costs.  Contact Danny Wilson, AllState Rep at 972-519-0936 or email him at DannyWilson@allstate.com.  Guest Speaker 2:  The Official beginning of the SCA 2004 Planning & ad sales for the programs began @ the meeting.  Tips for nominating and marketing the different stages were presented.  The possibilities of the type of show were introduced.  The location has been narrowed down to 3:  Hard Rock Café, Giley’s, & The Granada Theater.  KPS is already taking as sales for the programs and a handout was passed out.  KPS is already looking for wonderful people to assist during the program as crew and presenters.  There will be a new format to the show this year with new hosts and entertainment throughout, but the same principle for awarding will return.  The suggested category list was passed around and remains open until locked Nov. 1^st.  KPS will return as a guest to the next meeting to present final decisions on the ceremony and assist hosts not present on the policies around the SCA.  Guest Speaker 3: King Wright, 1 Limo 2 Go, brought 2 things to the table:  1) Karaoke Challenge KJ Competition to be sponsored by Budweiser & another alcohol rep for Spring Tour Season.  This will pit host against host showing how talented they are as KJs working with systems and singers.  There will be a $5,000.00 winning purse to the best KJ.  2)  Karaoke Party Bus trips by 1 Limo 2 Go!  Featuring 2-3 stops hopping shows on prime nights or as a marketing tool to regular or new shows, etc.  Details coming. General Alliance Business:  1) Susan Werth (KPS) was voted in as Official Secretary replacing Kristen Ruby (Rock-C Productions) who asked to step down due to her school commitments. 2) Voted new term of office for Alliance Officers to 2 years (8 meetings) versus just the 1 year (4 meetings).  New Officers will be voted in January 2006. 3) Next meeting scheduled for Dec to hit before the SCA nomination/voting phase for KJ not understanding how to promote or participate in the SCA. Meeting close.

Meeting of the DFW KJ Alliance Sunday (07/18) at On the Border in Irving - 12 companies were represented, with 16 people present.  Greeting and announcements to newcomers, we collectively presented ideas for this website, and discussed the upcoming year's calendar.  The Treasury Dept reported their findings on business banking, DBA registration, and non-profit status pro's & con's.  Fundraising ideas were discussed.  The Events Team reported research on fairs/festivals and the endless possibilities on going in as a group sharing the expense for booths or stages to reach the public.  Creating a booklet featuring all the companies and services titled The DFW Karaoke Scene was presented supported by ad sales.  The Ethics Committee presented a collection of possible articles for the Official Code of Ethics to be voted on via email or at the next meeting by current members.  Guest Speaker Neil Pflum of Singer Stage Performance group introduced us to his organization and invited everyone to sit in on one of their performance meetings.  Topics of Concern brought to the table:  1) Officers or committee members no showing meetings and responsibility:  Decided to mark the absences and after two, the President & V-President will approach the member and afterwards decide if there is a need to set the position up for replacement.  2)  Members not attending meeting:  Since <now> there are only 4 scheduled meeting per year unless an emergency meeting is called, it should be easier for members to attend.  Jay Griffith will contact members who have been MIA to make sure they are still wishing to be a part of the Alliance.  Next meeting there will be an official membership agreement for each member to sign along with the voted Code of Ethics.  Assignment of duties:  (Everyone) Comb the DFW KJ Alliance website and help us fill in the gaps, (Everyone) Vote next week on Code of Ethics by email, (Ethics Committee) setup a process to hear issues, (Wendy White) email information about fairs/festivals and schedule a vote of involvement, (Denise Slay) acquiring an official DBA, (Susan Werth) prepare a yearly calendar of season slows & also create a mini flyer of the Alliance info, (Everyone) come up with ideas to bring new members to meetings, ways to raise funds, and other ways to advertise karaoke.

Meeting of the DFW KJ Alliance Sunday (04/18) at Fuddrucker's in Irving - 8 companies were represented, with 10 people present.  Greeting and announcements to newcomers, voted in Officers for 2004 by ballot.  Agreed for all meetings to run quarterly instead of monthly unless a special meeting is called and seconded by at least three additional DFW-KJ-A members not handled in committee or team meetings.

Meeting of the DFW KJ Alliance Sunday (00/00) at Fuddrucker's in Irving - 3 companies were represented, with 4 people present.  Discussed the upcoming holiday schedule and postponing the next DFW KJ Alliance meeting until after the first of the year or after the KPS Singers Choice Awards in February

Our second meeting of the DFW KJ Alliance Sunday (09/28) at Don Pablo's in Irving, brought new faces.  8 companies were represented, with 11 people present.  Again, our open discussion brought many views of concern.  Again, we had over 12 years of experience in karaoke while others were new to this business present.  Everyone had some concerns/questions & everyone shared answers & support.  It was great!  The main focus of this meeting fell on ethical operating practices.  When is someone truly attempting to take a show vs the establishment simply replacing the KJ.  How is burning discs hurting those who buy their library ethically.  And again, how to curve the over enthusiastic new comers who do not know how to ethically acquire a new show.  There was a new concern on how to handle issues between KJs ethically without creating enemies.  It was decided, the best approach was to try to control the issue to just the parties involved as it resolved and then only bring up portions that may affect the industry in the meetings.  I would like to invite any one of you to take a look on the KPS website (www.KaraokePitStop.com) in the PitStop off the main window, then select KJ Korner and see the pictures from the meeting.  Please feel free to contact anyone at that meeting to discuss the DFW KJ Alliance.  Everyone entering the meeting was asked to completed a information card listing top 3 concerns of the karaoke industry here in DFW or personal concerns for their business.  Everyone ordered food & beverages and made some introductions.  The meeting opened with a greeting and brief overall statement of why an association alliance was needed for karaoke jockeys in DFW by Susan Werth, KPS.  There was a recap of the last meeting and meeting notes were handed out.  Again, guests took turns around the table bringing up one topic each for open discussion.  Sadly, several KJs left after their concerns were aired.  We hope this will not become a habit, because everyone deserves their chance to bring things up in this meeting.

We had a wonderful first meeting of the DFW KJ Alliance Sunday (08/24)  at Don Pablo's in Irving.  12 companies were represented.  We covered a lot of ground in open discussion.  Some had over 12 years of experience in karaoke while others were new to this business.  Everyone had some concerns/questions & everyone shared answers & support.  It was great! Through replies, we heard that some were thinking this meeting was to price fix & take control of how they run their business.  They opted to wait & see what was to become of this.  Well, it was not & is not.  #1 price fixing is illegal.  #2 we must maintain a uniquely diverse array of companies.  All the alliance does, is bring folks together in support of each other.  I would like to invite any one of you to take a look on the KPS website (www.KaraokePitStop.com) in the PitStop off the main window, then select KJ Korner and see the pictures from the meeting.  Please feel free to contact anyone at that meeting to discuss the DFW KJ Alliance.  Everyone entering the meeting was asked to completed a information card listing top 3 concerns of the karaoke industry here in DFW or personal concerns for their business.  Everyone ordered food & beverages and made some introductions.  The meeting opened with greeting and brief overall statement of why an association alliance was needed for karaoke jockeys in DFW by Susan Werth, KPS.  This was followed by open discussion lead by Mick Larkin, Krank It Karaoke.  Guests took turns around the table bringing up one topic each for open discussion.  After the table had been rounded and many topics were covered, the meeting was closed by a poll vote on some of the topics discussed by Lisa Canterberry, Little Sister Productions.  Afterwards, everyone posed for pictures taken by Randy Ware, DW’s Karaoke.  It was a wonderful first meeting and everyone who attended seemed to think the idea of an association alliance was needed.