#popappella

After being gone from February-August I can safely say that you can once again come to Popappella for all of the best in A Cappella! That means Pentatonix, Straight No Chaser, VoicePlay, Home Free and all of your favorite collegiate groups!!!!

Man it’s good to be back in business

No matter how short, The Season 5 Sing-Off Holiday Special was chock full of voices only performances by some very talented groups. Whether professional touring groups, collegiate groups or up and comers in the a cappella community, the 6 groups that competed all proved why they were chosen to be on the show... I'd like to get into the performances themselves, but first I have to mention the judges

For the first time in 4 seasons, lead judge and a cappella aficionado Ben Folds was unable to participate due to his touring schedule. Instead the seat was filled by Fall Out Boy frontman and self-proclaimed a cappella nerd Patrick Stump. At first I was skeptical for anyone to replace "Mr. Big Words" but Patrick gave some great critique and had some wonderful things to say, making it clear that he loves vocal music. Of course if The Sing-Off is lucky enough to get a 6th season I'd love Ben Folds to return, but I wouldn't mind Patrick sticking around. 4 judges works fine for The Voice, why not The Sing-Off

Opening Performance: All Groups - Kids in America (OPB: Kim Wilde)

It reminded me of the group numbers on the earlier seasons... Not too flashy, just a quick way to introduce the groups with a quick song. I will say though Alfredo Austin of The Exchange stole the number with his leads, he just really took command of the song and it was kinda hard to take your eye off of him and the energy he brought to the performance

Round 1:

Timothy's Gift - Ghost (OPB: Ella Henderson)

I thought this was a strong song choice for these ladies. Those of you who haven't heard the original, I suggest you check it out. It just missed the Billboard Top 40 in the United States, peaking at 52 but was a SMASH in the UK... I might also mention that Ella herself started her career on a reality singing competition, placing 6th in the 9th season of X Factor UK.

Normally groups that compete on The Sing-Off without vocal percussion aren't very enjoyable, not necessarily bad just lacking. But these ladies really impressed me! I know a lot of a cappella purists aren't quite into all female groups because of the balance and there being no true low end but I was quite surprised at how well this group pulled that off. The spread of soloists was perfect, but Abby Lane DEFINITELY stole the spotlight with her solo flipping into her head voice. Shawn Stockman was right when he said that her voice "sounded like heaven"

a.squared - Pompeii (OPB: Bastille)

I'm sure everyone is tired of hearing a cappella groups arrange this song. (Fun Fact: It was one of the most performed songs in the 2013 ICCAs)Bastille was one of the standout artists in 2013/2014 and even got nominated for Best New Artist at the 2015 Grammy awards.. Plus the song is catchy so I'm not complaining!

Following the SingOff hashtag on Twitter, when this group said they'd be using loop pedals and other effects to enhance their performance people IMMEDIATELY cried foul or complained that ARORA (Formerly Sonos from Season 3) didn't get to use their pedals and effects. I thought it was a cool arrangement, however... I think the fading and vocoder effects were a bit much. There is a place in the a cappella community for electronica based a cappella... But not on The Sing-Off.

Traces - River Deep, Mountain High (OPB: Tina Turner)

Pretty typical song choice for an all-female R&B group. I haven't been able to look at this song the same way since seeing Naya Rivera and Amber Riley sing it as a duet on Season 2 of GLEE... But I digress

I didn't quite get this arrangement, the harmonies were fine and all but the song itself was rushed, and the abrupt rhythm change was a bit offputting... But that ladybass doe :O I will however say when Jewel said she had the lowest woman's voice on The Sing-Off, she was mistaken. Johanna Vinson from Delilah and Element has a few notes on Tamika.

The Exchange - Love Runs Out (OPB: OneRepublic)

Being a touring group, The Exchange was going to be hard to beat going in. They were cohesive throughout, the soloists were spot on and it was just everything a Sing-Off performance is supposed to be

Chris and Richard really kept the rhythm section and the pounding beat that drives the original song intact. I knew they would advance to the next round the moment they opened their mouths and knew they would be the ones to beat

SanFran6 - Break Free (OPB: Ariana Grande ft Zedd)

For a relatively new group, these guys surprised me!

Cherilyn has quite the pop voice which was on par with Ariana's vocal in the song... but Danny stole the show and quite possibly the title of best beatboxer of the season. EDM tracks are very popular nowadays in a cappella but for him to make those noises live without studio enhancement, that's pretty impressive.

The Melodores - Trumpets (OPB: Jason Derulo)

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE collegiate groups and I've been a fan of the Vanderbilt Melodores from the start, but this performance didn't quite do it for me. It's funny they decided to do this song, because I got re-obsessed with this song after VoicePlay used it in their Disney Broadway Medley and I listen to it constantly.

However, I agree with Shawn that the bass was practically nonexistent amongst that Trumpet line which in a collegiate group is rare to not hear bass because of the full sound you get from 12-18 voices... They were in my top 4 but I wasn't quite sure whether or not they would make the next round

At the end of the first round, I had my Top 3 pegged as The Exchange, SanFran6, and Timothy's Gift....with Melodores, A.Squared, and Traces bringing up the end... After a FLAWLESS holiday medley by Season 3 Champs Pentatonix, Nick Lachey announced that the 3 groups moving on would be The Exchange, Melodores, and Traces. The first 2 I completely understood and was happy about being a fan of those groups but I didn't understand the 3rd choice at all

Round 2:

Judge's Choice

Traces - I'm Every Woman (OPB: Chaka Khan)

The judges chose the 70s Chaka Khan hit made famous by Whitney Houston, another predictable song choice imo... But in this round, I GOT IT...They kept a steady rhythm and clearly made me understand why they were picked to move on

The Exchange - Sing (OPB: Ed Sheeran)

As a big fan of both Ed Sheeran and The Exchange I loved this song choice! The judges decided to throw these guys a little bit of a curveball giving them an arrangement that featured a "rap break" which they seamlessly turned into a fast 3-part harmony that was very satisfying

Melodores - Take Me to Church (OPB: Hozier)

I'm getting pretty sick and tired of this song. At first I didn't like it but then it grew on me and now it's being overplayed. The judges thought The Melodores should take on something a little darker and soloist Dan McNeill, well... took us to church. EASILY the best performance by a collegiate group on The Sing-Off!

After deliberation, and an all star performance by all 3 judges, Nick Lachey and Season 4 champs Home Free to Ben E. King's Stand By Me... The winner of the $50,000 grand prize was announced

AND THE WINNER IS...

THE VANDERBILT MELODORES!!!!

After 5 seasons, a collegiate group finally won The Sing-Off... That last song really sealed the deal and since there was no recording contract involved this year an academic group took the competition... I feel like The Exchange deserved the win.....BUT The Exchange didn't get shorthanded

They will be on the National Sing-Off tour with VoicePlay and Street Corner Symphony starting in February!!!!

Fun Fact:

If the other 3 groups had been chosen to advance to the second round their songs would have been

Timothy's Gift - Son of a Preacher Man (OPB: Dusty Springfield)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEoR39taoZc

a.squared - Latch (OPB: Disclosure ft Sam Smith)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgQl_2pWrr4

SanFran6 - All About That Bass (OPB: Meghan Trainor)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9lPAWJn2bA

For those that didn't know.....

Ben Folds isn't going to be able to be a judge on "Season 5" of The Sing-Off... I personally think Deke Sharon should take his place! I get that he's a producer and musical director on the show, but Simon Cowell co-produced American Idol AND X Factor and was still a judge!

Some might argue and say that Deke doesn't have the "star power" to be the "face" of a reality show, I mean he's definitely got the credentials (4 seasons of The Sing-Off, Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2) but let's be honest, did anyone know who Simon Cowell was prior to Pop Idol/American Idol? Did anyone know who Piers Morgan was prior to Britain's/America's Got Talent?

Name isn't everything, if you know what you're doing..... I also would LOVE to see Sara Bareilles back on the judging panel

Rockapella - Tempted

OPB: Squeeze

Album: 2

OMG this is our 1000th post..... What started off as a sideblog of obsession has turned into something MUCH MUCH MORE and for that I thank you guys from the bottom of my heart

I thought it only fitting to share the song that got me hooked on contemporary a cappella.... And the group partially responsible for the name of the blog... Rockapella's "Tempted"

Remember to follow us on

Facebook: Facebook.com/popappellablog

Twitter: @Popappella

Thank You All!

Pentatonix - Let It Go

OPB: Idina Menzel (From FROZEN)

Album: PTX, Vols. 1 & 2 (Japan Edition)

I had the chance to send some questions to the founder of University of Oregon's On the Rocks and a current viral YouTuber, Mr. Peter Hollens

What was the idea behind forming On The Rocks?

I needed something to balance out the voice performance major that I was taking to get my degree. Ever since I heard BYU Vocal Point's album "Instruments Not Included" I knew I wanted to be in a group in college, I listened to it on repeat for months... (It was a cassette) I loved all of it! The humor, the harmonies, the way it made me dance, something just really clicked! And now here I am to this day still making a cappella music! I recently was able to finally work with BYU Vocal Point (albeit a much different group) and we made this with Noteworthy and Stuart Edge. I think it was a success!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58l0-Jc_bOk

Do you have a favorite recording that you were featured on when with the group?

Yes! Kyrie by Mr. Mister

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FJN8O3VDQ0 (LIVE)

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/sing-on-ep/id514791421 (Studio Recording)

How did you get involved with The Sing-Off? Was it weird performing as On The Rocks with a completely new group of guys???  

The Producers asked me to convince the group to audition for the show (they decided against it) but because I was recording the group at the time one by one I talked them into doing it! They ended up asking me to come down and audition with them and then that was that!

When did you decide to get involved with making YouTube videos and producing solo multitrack a cappella by yourself?

My father who was dying of Brain Cancer at the time had asked me to start making my own music and I had just finished being on the Sing Off Season 2, so I had a few people asking me for new music! 

What’s been your favorite arrangement thusfar? Favorite collaboration? 

Oooo that's hard..

Pop Song: I Won't Give Up by Jason Mraz

Folk Song: Shenandoah

Collab: The Disney Medley with Alex G! 

Your wife Evynne was a part of UO’s Divisi and arranged probably one of my favorite a cappella tunes of all time a cover of Usher’s “Yeah!” which was featured on Glee’s Season 2 finale. Was she ever asked or notified that they were planning on using that particular arrangement?

Nope.  But after we asked them about it a few times they ended up giving her a small stipend Evynne was also a co-founder the group, and her group was a huge part of the book Pitch Perfect which later became a pretty cool movie.

What’s the best part about being a “youtuber” do you ever get recognized on the street?

To be honest I doubt anyone in all of Eugene, Oregon knows that I do it. I also rarely leave my house, so not really. The best part of being a youtuber is just helping inspire other people to do the same, and educate other musicians on the best way to follow in my footsteps.  I actually recently finished a Q&A section on my website to help answer people's questions.... bad grammar and all: http://peterhollens.com/qa/

Why do you think a cappella has gained such a boost in popularity over the past 5 or so years?

Honestly, you have to give a lot of credit to Glee, The Sing-Off, Pitch Perfect and artists like Pentatonix. People who do what I do like Mike Tompkins and Sam Tsui have helped a lot as well. I love those guys, I feel so lucky to be able to work with such talented nice people. I can't say enough great things about my fellow collab partners.

Is there a Youtube Artist you haven't collaborated with that you'd like to?

Pentatonix or The Piano Guys

You and Evynne just had a baby boy, Congrats! What's it been like being a new dad?

Thanks! It's been one of the hardest, yet most rewarding experiences of my life

You can keep up with Peter on Social Media

Main channel: youtube.com/peterhollens

Facebook: facebook.com/peterhollensmusic

Twitter: twitter.com/peterhollens

Instagram: instagram.com/peterhollens

Tumblr: http://peterhollens.tumblr.com/

Google+: google.com/+peterhollens

If you feel like helping Peter with his endeavors, become a Patron!

http://www.patreon.com/peterhollens

I reached out to the members of the groups about to set off on the Sing-Off Tour and conducted a little Q&A with a select member from each group. Trace Gaynor (The Filharmonic), Chris Rupp (Home Free), and Layne Stein (VoicePlay)

What was your favorite song to perform on The Sing-Off?

Trace Gaynor: I know we would all have different answers for this. But personally, my favorite was This Is How We Do It. That choreography was so much fun to work on, and   that's when I started to feel that The Filharmonic was turning into a boy band. Treasure is a close second though... or One More Night. (I'm obviously too indecisive for this question.)

Chris Rupp: I'm Alright was such a blast.  You didn't see it on TV, but there was a solid minute of standing ovation for that song after we finished!

Layne Stein: Play That Funky Music was a song that we had a lot of fun with, but working with the AcoUstiKats on Eye of the Tiger was by far the most fun. You should have seen how many good ideas we threw out!

Are there any songs you'd like to do on tour that you didn't get to do on the show?

Trace: We're still finalizing the details, but you'll have to get tickets to see what we end up choosing! One song I think we're pretty set on is the one we would have done if we were put in the "My Generation" episode as opposed to the "#1 Hits" episode. I'll let your imaginations fly...

Chris: We were actually pretty happy with the songs we ended up doing on the show! The back and forth dialogue on the numbers/arrangements with the production team was great, so there weren't any big disappointments on songs we didn't get to do.

Layne: We actually have a few extra options we have been working on, so you may see different songs depending on which show you come to. The one that we really wanted to do on the show was Daft Punk’s Get Lucky!

How hard was it to keep quiet that you were on The Sing-Off, before groups were announced?

Trace: You have NO idea. One of the weirdest experiences for me was immediately going back to "the real world" after we taped the finale. We taped that episode on a Tuesday, and I was back in class at USC by that Wednesday afternoon. You're going through such a surreal experience, and being thrown back into your daily routine was almost like a culture shock.

Chris: Well, not nearly as hard as not telling people we'd won!  The funniest thing for us was doing shows this past fall and having people tell us we should audition for The Sing-Off and that it was coming back!

Layne: Over the years, we have had people come up to us after a performance and say "You should be on The Sing-Off!". So after we had taped the show, we had a random lady come up to us and say it, and we all stood there with straight faces and said, "what show?"

As far as a cappella music goes who are your influences?

Trace: I love big collegiate groups. I remember watching videos in high school of groups like Berklee's Pitch Slapped, BYU's Noteworthy, and IU's Straight No Chaser. I was always completely amazed at their innovation and the wall of sound a bunch of college kids could make! And I guess Pentatonix is alright *sarcasm*

Chris: Rockapella, GLAD, Blue Jupiter, The Blenders, Tonic Sol-Fa, The House Jacks, m-pact, Swingle Singers, The Real Group...the list goes on and on.

Layne: Take 6, Rockapella, The Blenders, m-pact, The Bobs, and of course, PTX

Any prior experience in A Cappella prior to your current group?

Trace: Funny story actually, I didn't make the a cappella group at my high school! I joined a group (The Troy Tones) when I came to USC, and was the musical director there for a few years. Niko and Jules were both members of Mt. San Antonio College's Fermata Nowhere. (Another funny story: Troy Tones competed against Fermata Nowhere at ICCA Semifinals 2012, and I remember noticing their Filipino bass and beat-boxer. If only I had known...) Joe was in Fermata Nowhere a few years before, and was in the group with Avi (of Pentatonix) when they won ICCAs in 2009. VJ had done a lot of jazz at Cal State Long Beach, and Barry had done a lot of barbershop and a cappella throughout high school and college.

Chris: I was constanly doing a cappella projects in high school and early college,  then I started Home Free.  13 years later, here I am.

Layne: Geoff, Earl, and I were all singing soprano when we met in the 7th grade. In high school, we started the group as 42Five and we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into...

I also had some individual questions relating to their specific groups

The Filharmonic:

Since your group is rather new and you haven't toured yet, what are the levels of excitement like? Are you nervous at all?

Trace: SO. EXCITED. The whole Sing Off experience was such a whirlwind, and we're all pumped to keep it rolling with this tour. VoicePlay and Home Free are so professional, so being able to sing with them for 6 weeks is going to be a great learning experience for us. Plus, they're both awesome groups of people, so we'll have a lot of fun offstage too. 

Whose idea was it to put together an all Filipino a cappella group?

It was Jules and Niko's idea. They had gotten some guidance and tips from Avi Kaplan (Pentatonix), and then they decided to reach out to find the rest of us. We had met a few times in different combinations of the six of us to work out arrangements and other logistics. But the first time we all met as a group, we filmed our audition video. The rest is history.

Do you guys plan on recording an EP/Album?

No comment. :)

Home Free:

Has the energy of your group changed at all since replacing lead tenor Matt Atwood with Austin Brown?  

Chris: It's a completely different vibe - every person brings something different to the table.  Austin has that country flair that really fits our new sound/direction, whereas Matt has strong roots in Musical Theatre.

About how many line-up changes have you had since forming the group?

Oh my! That list is huge...we've had maybe 30+ people sing with Home Free at some point. Some however were one-off subs

When did the group form?

Our first performance ever (as Home Free) was in December of 2000 for a church talent show.

How have your lives changed since winning The Sing-Off?

Well, for starters we no longer have any free time! Every spare moment we get gets taken up with something else to help propel the group forward and keep the momentum going from the show.

Do you feel that your touring experience gave you the edge going into the competition?  

It certainly helped a lot!  We were able to get our songs put together faster than anyone else, and it also helped being on stage. Once we got past the initial awe factor of being where we were, it turned into a regular show for a few hundred people (albeit with a lot more cameras than usual!)

VoicePlay:

What made you guys decide to add a female voice to your group?

Layne: Prior to the Sing-Off, we worked on a YouTube collaboration with a singer named Rachel Potter, on a video that seemed to be somewhat successful for us. When The Sing-Off auditions began, we all were thinking it was a long shot since we had already been turned down twice for other seasons. When we got a phone call from The Sing-Off casting company, we were somewhat surprised to hear that they had seen this video, and strongly suggested auditioning with Rachel. After debating the addition of a female to the group, I had somewhat convinced the boys that we should just send in a video with Rachel and just see what happens. One thing led to the next, and soon the producers of The Sing-Off were giving us the warm fuzzies.

However... Rachel had also auditioned for The X-Factor, and was torn between doing the show with VoicePlay vs. working on her solo career (which I totally agree with her decision). We were a done deal with The Sing-Off, and then the next day The X-Factor had called Rachel and let her know they wanted her for the show. At this point in time they had asked us to come up with options for another girl, and we called our good friend Honey Larochelle. The producers fell in love with her, and the rest is history.

I see that Emoni (from TEN) is taking Honey's place on the tour, out of all of the female voices to choose from, why her?

If you've seen anything that Emoni performed while on The Sing-Off, then you know that choosing her to fill our featured vocalist spot was a no brainer. The. Girl. Can SAAAAAAAAANG. 

That being said, we made some really special bonds with other group members during the tapings, and decided to create a handful of YouTube collaborations (See their YouTube channel or their EP "Collide" for examples) with some of our new friends from the show. When we shot "Can't Believe It" with Emoni, it quickly became evident that we not only got along great, but she fit right in to our silliness (which we were limited on how much we were able to show on The Sing-Off).

For this tour, we want to show people who we really are. While on The Sing-Off, we feel like we got put in a box as "A girl with 5 background singers", which couldn't be further from the truth. VoicePlay is a theatrical show that takes a cappella music and makes it fun and creative with a bit of an edge. If you come see us on this tour, we will be doing some music from the show, and few other things that might surprise you (in a good way).

Your last album had a Disney theme... did that stem from working at theme parks and being from Orlando... or did you just think it was a good Idea?

Yes and No. 

Through the years we've been pretty lucky to work for Disney in their parks and for their special events. We were getting hired pretty regularly for their corporate events and decided to arrange some Disney medleys to give them options during their creative planning process. Then we had the thought to record these medleys along with some other Disney favorites as a way to showcase more of our theatrical side/voice acting talent of the group.

And finally, not really a question but...

I'm still bummed that there are no shows in the tri-state area (Florida/Georgia/Alabama) since you guys are based in Orlando... it still makes no sense!

We were bummed when we realized that we weren't going to be playing in our hometown!

You Can Find These Groups on Social Media

Home Free: http://www.homefreevocalband.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/homefreevocalband

Twitter: http://twitter.com/HomeFreeGuys

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/homefreevocalband

Instagram: http://instagram.com/homefreeguys

The Filharmonic: http://www.thefilharmonic.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheFilharmonic

Twitter: http://twitter.com/TheFilharmonic

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/thefilharmonic

Instagram: http://instagram.com/thefilharmonic

VoicePlay: http://thevoiceplay.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/VoicePlay

Twitter: http://twitter.com/thevoiceplay

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/thevoiceplaydotcom

Q&A with Chris Rupp (Home Free), Trace Gaynor (The Filharmonic) and Layne Stein (VoicePlay) Coming to Popappella within the next couple of weeks in time for the tour