“Karaoke is as authentically Japanese as sushi” one comedian noted. This is Jankara a karaoke experience in Osaka. Jankara is a karaoke chain with many locations. It provides private booths for you and your friends. You can sing as loudly and badly as you like.
Jankara is operated by TOAI Co. It is a karaoke box chain. The external name is Jankara. As of December 2024 Jankara has 186 stores. These stores are mainly in western Japan. Jankara is expanding at a pace of one to two stores per month. It does not have stores in the Tohoku or Kanto regions.
Jankara offers low room rates and all-you-can-drink soft drinks. Some stores also offer all-you-can-drink alcohol. You can add all-you-can-drink beer or whiskey for an additional fee.
Rates vary by store. Students can get a discount. Jankara uses DAM and JOYSOUND karaoke machines. DAM includes LIVE DAM STADIUM LIVE DAM Ai and LIVE DAM Ai R. JOYSOUND includes JOYSOUND MAX JOYSOUND MAX2 and JOYSOUND MAX GO.
In the past Jankara introduced concept rooms called Relakara. These special rooms were available at the same rate as regular rooms. There were collaboration rooms with Cerezo Osaka Suntory and Weekly Baseball.
Many Jankara stores have pamphlets for “Yukai Resort”. Jankara mini operates karaoke corners in “Yukai Resort”. Twenty-eight stores excluding “Hana Irodori” offer free access to Yukai Resort. This is from check-in until 7 PM and on the day of check-out. “Hana Irodori” offers free access from check-in to check-out.
There is a CM song composed by Kida Taro. It is sung by Kenta Miura.
One unique service at Tennoji store involved staff running up the stairs. Staff would welcome guests at different floors.
The mascot character is “Deruchan”. In spring 2022 the official Twitter account revealed the mascot’s name. There was also an original tumbler Twitter campaign. Jankara LINE stamps are also available.
Besides regular Jankara there are various types of stores. In 2006 Jankara opened “Super Jankara”. It featured new store designs menus and staff uniforms. There were three Super Jankara stores in Kyoto.
Kyoto also had a one-person karaoke specialty store called “Ichikara”. It was open from 2012 to 2020. Like the Tokyo one-person karaoke store “Wankara” it used headphones. The trademarks for “Hitori Karaoke” and “Solo Oke” are held.
In Osaka’s Sennichimae there was a karaoke store exclusively for women called “女子カラ”. All staff were female. Men older than elementary school age were not allowed. It had powder rooms and appealed to travelers near Namba Station.
There are also self-service karaoke stores called “Self Jankara”. There are two stores one near Suminoe Koen Station and another near Hirakata Station.
In October 2021 Jankara opened Jaja Jankara Kyoto University BOX. It aimed to create an extraordinary space. There is a menu limited to this store.
In June 2022 Jankara opened Deep Fuse store in Fuse Higashi Osaka. The first floor is an open space with counter seats. Other stores with open spaces include Asian Tennoji store Kintetsu Yao store and Daikokucho Nibanchi street store.
Tennoji store was renovated in March 2023. The Umeda Dotonbori and Shinsaibashi stores were renovated in November 2023. In April 2024 the Shinkyogoku store was renovated. These stores have an open space called “BAL UTAO”. It offers 160 kinds of all-you-can-drink alcohol for 500 yen for 30 minutes.
Dotonbori store mainly targets inbound tourists. It features Jankara Yokocho where you can eat tempura and okonomiyaki on the rooftop.
Jankara offers a 30-minute room charge with all-you-can-drink. As of February 2023 the cheapest rate was 30 yen for 30 minutes for students and 50 yen for 30 minutes for general customers. This is a weekday member rate during a non-special pricing period at Fukuyama Ekimae store.
Other rate plans include free time and 3-hour packs.
Members can get discounts. Membership ranks are determined by usage in the past 3 months. Points are awarded based on rank. Points can be exchanged for coupons. Student discounts are available with a student ID. Senior memberships are available for those 55 and older. Half-price coupons are awarded every 10 points earned. The third and fourth Tuesdays of each month are half price for seniors.
In 2016 Jankara collaborated with SCRAP for a puzzle-solving event. If successful participants could win free usage fees.
In December 2022 Osaka Kozai collaborated with Jankara. They opened a scrap room at the Asian Tennoji store. It featured metal scraps as furniture. This scrap room was designed with SDGs in mind. The president of Osaka Kozai hoped it would spark interest in the metal recycling industry.
As you can see Jankara is more than just a karaoke chain. It is an experience that embraces fun collaboration and innovation. So grab a mic choose your song and let the good times roll at Jankara.