A-capella

April 10, 2018

I am a huge fan of acapella. I started liking it after Glee came on T.V. I hadn’t quite realised how much I like music and how much I enjoy watching shows that tell a story with a song until I started writing this post and all my favourite musicals started popping in my head and I realised I am a hard-core Bollywood movie lover!

Songs by the Glee cast isn’t really acapella but Will Schuster introduced acapella with the third episode of Glee, which featured the ‘Acafellas’. By the time I was immersed in my love for acapella, Pitch Perfect hit the screens. The movie might not really have been the greatest where the story line was concerned but we can’t deny that the movie finally made people stop and take Acapella seriously.

I have prepared a really small list of some really cool acapella groovers:

Stand by me by Ben. E. King, performed by Rockapella

At Number 5 is Rockapella which had been around since 1986! How did I chance upon them? Though the group is originally from New York, they garnered fame in Japan in the 90’s. When you watch and listen to whatever J-pop is made available on YouTube, you invariably land on Rockapella! This band lasted for a really long time and they were so good at what they did. Unfortunately though, they didn’t get the recognition they deserved. In my humble opinion they were the originals. This is my tiny tribute to them in the hopes that their videos will get the views they deserve.

Evolution of A.R.Rahaman's Music by Voctronica

At Number 4 is Voctronica. I love A.I.B. It was when AIB featured them in one of their videos that I first heard of Voctronica and promptly subscribed to their YouTube channel. It is just unfortunate that they haven’t uploaded new content in the past two years. Whatever they have put up for their audience on the channel though is definitely worth many listens!

Paradise by Coldplay performed by Mike Tompkins

At Number 3 is Mike Tompkins. He’s a solo artist who is pulling what Dave Grohl did, when he started the Foo Fighters. Mike Tompkins is one of the ‘Original’ YouTubers and has been uploading his covers for over 10 years now! He is the voice, the instruments, the beatbox and every other element that goes into making the melody of a song.

Mash up of - Lovestoned by Justin Timberlake and Ya Ali from Gangster performed by PennMasala

At Number 2 is PennMasala. Thanks to U Penn we have had Penn Masala for over 2 decades now. This is a band that has its members changing every time the older ones graduate from college and hence we always notice changes in their music. Unlike most of the other acapella groups mentioned here in the list, PennMasala performs acapella of mashups and that is what sets them apart from the other artists. My favourite PennMasala era is 2009 when they released their ‘On Detours’ album. Best.👌

Honourable mentions

The lion sleeps tonight by The Tokens Performed by Straight No Chasers

S.N. Chasers: Listen to how they progress from the Lion sleeps tonight to Brown eyed girl by Van Morison😊

Millionär by Die Prinzen

Die Prinzen: I went through a phase where I wanted to learn German so I chanced up on them.

Right Round by Flo Rida performed by The Treblemakers

The Treblemakers! Just Kidding! I couldn't help putting this bit from Pitch Perfect in this list.

New Rules by Dua Lipa performed by Pentatonix

At Number 1 is Pentatonix. Pentatonix is the first ever acapella group to have won the Grammy’s. They already have 3 in the bag! As a five member group with the occasional addition of Beyoncé, this group has been covering songs beautifully! Mitch Grassi and Scott Hoying also constitute the duo called Superfruit and have their own YouTube channel for the same. Pentatonix is all set to release an Album later this month.

Happy Listening and hope you have some new songs on your playlist now!