26 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY JULY 25-31, 2024 www.montereycountynow.com regular singer. When told by another audience member to stop, the customer angrily left the bar, only to come back and confront the singer directly. Another example Gray recalls is when someone tried to force her apprehensive husband to sing, only to angrily and embarrassingly take up the microphone herself and kill the vibe. Gray says the key to handling those situations is to remain lighthearted. “I don’t like to joke about the person because that’s targeting someone, and that’s not what I’m there for,” he says. “I instead make a joke about something else and move on to keep the show going. People will forget it.” Hosts are not the only people who help keep a karaoke show positive. Regular singers, like those who help swell Britannia Arms on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, also understand the ethos behind the activity. They understand that singing karaoke can be therapy, a form of self-expression and a way to become braver in the spotlight. Becca Miller, an eight-year veteran bartender at the Brit, gets it. “Tuesdays are my favorite nights,” she says. She’ll also sign up to sing when she’s off the clock. “Britannia has the draw for it because it’s the only extracurricular activity. Everyone wants to do karaoke.” As the bar that offers the most karaoke nights per week (four) in the county, Britannia Arms draws a regular crowd, but it’s not always quite so big—even karaoke singers and hosts need rest. But one man is there every karaoke night. He shows up with an unplugged electric guitar to cheer the singers on when he’s not on the mic himself. Kevin Martinez is an icon of karaoke at the pub, and he’s on a mission to uplift performers as rock stars. He’s a little coy about his persona, though. “I just like singing songs,” he says, “and pretending I’m like Mick Jagger and a star and all that.” Martinez has the look of a rock star, and not just because he sports his electric guitar. Much like his Rolling Stones idol, there’s an intensity to him that embodies raw and rebellious appeal. And that appeal comes out when he’s on the microphone. Martinez endured a tumor in 2007 due to Cowden’s Syndrome, leading to multiple surgeries. The health challenge gave him unique facial and vocal features, but the karaoke community uplifts him every time he’s there. “I’ve met so many people here,” he says as he shows his phone’s photo album full of selfies with bar-goers at the pub. “I think a lot of people want to get recognized, and that’s hard in a place that’s a transient community. People like pretending to be stars and having their moment for the night.” Host Rico corroborates this: “We love [Martinez],” he says. “He puts a smile on people’s faces.” Martinez has been coming to karaoke at Britannia Arms since he moved to Monterey from Gilroy in 2013. Music has always been a passion of his—he recalls singing along to records when he was young. “Wild Horses” is his go-to karaoke song because he’s a big Rolling Stones fan, and also because he loves the sense of romantic tension that he can use to rouse the crowd. They respond positively. The guitar Martinez plays is not just the perfect sonic accessory to get the crowd going at the Brit, it’s also a symbol of the compassion the karaoke community embodies. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, Martinez would come to karaoke nights with a ukulele in tow. Rico and Miller recognized this, and that’s why they thought it was odd when he began showing up without it. They and other regulars learned that a random harasser had targeted Martinez on the street, believed to be because of his physical appearance, and smashed his instrument. But the staff and regulars at Britannia Arms didn’t take that sitting down. Upon hearing what happened, they pooled money together and bought Martinez a guitar, tagged with their signatures. Eventually, Martinez upgraded to the guitar he now has—a black-and-white six-string electric with a whammy bar—living proof that barriers and bullying are no match for the karaoke community. Confidence barriers aren’t the only ones to be broken through karaoke. In Salinas, Spanish karaoke nights are happening at both longtime establishments such as Los Dos Potrillos and newer mainstays like Brew-N-Krew. NIK BLASKOVICH Above: Kevin Martinez (from left) accompanies Sam Duncan, Jackie Taylor and Kim Lipka, a group of Shrek-ear-wearing singers, at karaoke night at the Britannia Arms with his signature electric guitar. He “plays” as a backup to uplift others as rock stars. At right: Martinez sings his go-to song, “Wild Horses” by The Rolling Stones. “If you have a good day, sing and celebrate. If you have a bad day, get it out.”
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