Pentatonix Bohemian Rhapsody Insights: So, some things to know about this cover and video: -It took PTX years to get the arrangement to where they felt they could do the original masterpiece justice. -The cover, and especially the video, was meant to be an homage to Queen. Some of the moments paying respect were: 1.The mono-recording of the line "easy come, easy go" followed by the panning of the voices from left to right on the line "little high, little low" (which is how the original was recorded), 2. Obviously the flashlights being used to mimic the lighting on the operatic part of the original video, 3. The four shooting stars to represent the four members of Queen, as well as acknowledge the fact that Dr. Brian May is an astrophysicist, 4. The overhead shot of them lying on the couch is to represent the Sheer Heart Attack album cover. 5. When Mitch lies down on the couch, singing "Too late, My time has come," they're referring to Freddie Mercury's death (the foreshadowing was, of course, unintentional on Freddie's part; there's no way he could have known about AIDS, thank goodness). The other four are walking next to the couch to serve as Mitch's pall bearers. The megaphone was just a prop. It is not needed to reproduce the electric guitar distortion. -PTX can, and does, perform this live with no backing track...something even Queen and the Great Freddie Mercury could not do. Freddy once said he didn't care what people did with his music as long as they "...don't make it boring, darling!", so I think he would absolutely approve. They were indeed on an actual road and luckily, there actually is a behind the scenes for the making of this one that you can watch! The link is: th-cam.com/video/Q8ugJnIG_Lk/w-d-xo.html Also when Brian Mays heard it... he posted it on his web site with the word "ENJOY”. The overall video--with the "living room" and couch--is an homage to Pentatonix's own journey as a group. They lost their record deal right after winning the Sing Off and moving to LA, so they started putting out videos on TH-cam, performing covers. They would sit on the couch in Kevin (beatboxer) and Avi's (bass) living room and just record themselves on Mitch's (counter tenor who took the lead on this song) iPad. Some of their earliest videos went viral and they eventually were able to secure a new deal, record an EP, go on tour, release chart-topping albums and win three Grammy awards...so they moved out of the living room and down this new, unknown road. At the end of the day, though, they're still the same choir-nerds they've always been; just happy to sit together on a couch and sing.
Occasionally I'll find myself listening to a song five times in a row, concentrating on a different performer each time. Sometimes it's the only way to figure out what everyone is doing, and "Bohemian Rhapsody" is a prime example of a song that makes me want to do this.
The audio panning on "little high, little low" is a direct quote from Queen. If you listen to Queen's original you'll hear the same panning on the same phrase. #Pentatonix loves Queen, and they love "Bohemian Rhapsody," so they always wanted to cover this song, but they feared that they couldn't do it justice, so they decided to wait until they were sure they were ready. That took them five years, but it was worth the wait - they were definitely ready. In the early days of Pentatonix, after Epic reneged on the recording contract Pentatonix had "won" on _The Sing-Off,_ Pentatonix started posting to TH-cam; it was the only way they COULD publish their music. A lot of those early TH-cam videos show the five of them sitting on a couch, with the trio on the back of the couch and Avi and Kevin on the seat in front of them, just five very young people singing their hearts out, making their dream come true. Note that this is the configuration we see them in at the beginning and end of "Bohemian Rhapsody," which is one reason the couch needs to move - it's taking Pentatonix (and us) on a trip down Memory Lane. The more important reason the couch moves is that it's standing in for the car in _Wayne's World,_ where Wayne and Garth introduced a whole new generation to the genius of Queen by putting a tape of "Bohemian Rhapsody" into the car's tape player. The couch was motorized, and not very well balanced. (Note that when they're sitting on it their feet don't quite reach the ground. The little curtain thing on the bottom was added to hide the motor.) It kept trying to tip over during the filming and actually managed to throw Kevin off at one point. There was a small platform attached to the back so that Kirstin could climb on the couch from behind - Scott, being a foot taller than Kirstin, didn't need it. When Mitch lies down on the couch, singing "Too late, My time has come," they're referring to Freddie Mercury's death (the foreshadowing was, of course, unintentional on Freddie's part; there's no way he could have known about AIDS, thank goodness). The other four are walking next to the couch to serve as Mitch's pall bearers. Many people think the megaphone is distorting Mitch's voice to make it sound more like an electric guitar, but the megaphone actually has nothing to do with it. It wasn't turned on, and couldn't have distorted Mitch's voice even if it had been - it was just a megaphone. The electric guitar is all Mitch. Mitch happened to see the megaphone lying around on the set and thought it would make a cool prop, so it's been confusing people ever since. During the "Bismillah" argument, note that Scott, whose range includes both bass and tenor registers, is actually singing along with both the high and low sides of the argument. Scott has said that this rapid switching is the hardest part of the song for him. When the camera pans up to show us the starry night sky during Mitch's second guitar solo, it's meant as a tribute to Queen's lead guitarist, Brian May, who has a doctorate in astrophysics. The four shooting stars honor the four members of Queen. When the camera pans back down to show Pentatonix lying on the couch together it's meant to recall the cover art for Queen's "Sheer Heart Attack" album. And when this official video was first released, Brian May posted a link to it on all his social media accounts with the comment: "Enjoy."
You will keep falling in love with them - one of their specialty is doing "evolution of" videos where they mash a number of songs together - they did one for Rihanna, Ariana Grande, Michael Jackson, and their 90's Dance video is so good! They never disappoint,
Love the fanboying! Yes, they did an amazing job with this song. It took them 5 years of working at it to feel confident enough to do the video and to do the song (and Queen) full justice. They suceeded!! Dr Brian May, lead guitarist for Queen, put it up on his social media, saying simply..."Enjoy!". That megaphone is simply a prop. Mitch has done this song on stage a few times and doesn't need it. Yes...they've done this live. They do use a choir for the "Bismillah..." portion because they need the extra vocals, but other than that, it's exactly the same as the sound from the official video. Really looking forward to more PTX!!
If you are interested in how they put this video together there is a PENTATONIX BEHIND THE SCENES BOHEMIAN RAPSODY video that shows this. It looks mostly at the visuals (not the vocals), but is still very interesting.
I’m so pleased you have such a deep love for Bohemian Rhapsody and have found a group whom you respect to perform the piece well enough as a tribute to Queen and Freddy Mercury. How lucky for you, you still have the original and now you have ANOTHER quality version to listen to when you are in that mood 😊. If you enjoyed “Hallelujah” then I recommend “Say Something”, a devastatingly beautiful song that I have seen move even male reactors to tears, so be prepared.
Pentatonix History…..composed by Alan Freeman updated by Perry Stevenson They won The Sing Off in 2011. They made a guest starring appearance on America′s Got Talent as non−competitors a couple of years after that. The founding members are:- Scott Hoying (tall blond guy, natural baritone but has an impressive five−to−six octave range, can go all the way up to high tenor and down to bass, sings the bass lines when the usual bass singer takes the lead); Kirstin "Kirstie" (Rhymes with "Thirsty") Maldonado (the only female member, natural mezzo soprano, but can go down to low alto and as high as upper soprano, also can sing in whistle notes that are off the scale); For a time in 2018 between the group’s tours, had the female lead on Broadway in the production of “Kinky Boots”. Mitch Grassi (a true contra−tenor, can hit high notes in his chest voice with ease and go WAY higher in his falsetto, also with ease); Avriel "Avi" Kaplan (dark beard and long hair), true basso profundo, trained as an opera singer, also can go up into the tenor range; and Kevin "KO" Olusola (beatboxer extraordinaire, also is a world−class cellist who plays cello on some of their songs, has a beautiful high tenor voice and gets occasional lead vocal solos as well, graduated pre−med from Yale and speaks several languages including Mandarin Chinese). Kirstie, Scott & Mitch grew up together in Arlington, Texas, and began performing together as children in local youth musical theater. They ended up in high school together and performed in the choir. While there, they formed an a cappella group called The Trio which had several performance videos go viral on TH-cam, most notably a cover of Lady Gaga′s "Telephone". The three of them are best friends and consider themselves to be almost siblings. Scott & Kirstie (who were a class year ahead of Mitch) both graduated high school in 2010 and went their separate ways to different colleges, Scott at USC and Kirstie at Oklahoma. While at USC, Scott joined a USC−based a cappella group called the SoCal VoCals, where he met alumnus Ben Bram, who was now an arranger and vocal coach for the NBC TV show The Sing Off, an a cappella competition show. Ben convinced Scott to get The Trio to audition for the show. The three reunited (Mitch had to skip high school graduation ceremonies to go) in Los Angeles for the audition. They found out that the rules had changed, so they needed at least five members to audition. Ben put them together with Avi (a native of Visalia, California), who he knew from Avi′s performing days at Mount San Antonio College in California. They found Kevin (from Kentucky) through one of his TH-cam videos that had gone viral featuring him playing the cello and beatboxing at the same time, a talent that Kevin coined as "Cello−Boxing". Kevin arrived in Los Angeles literally the day before the audition! Scott came up with the name "Pentatonix" after the pentatonic scale. They performed a re−arrangement of "The Telephone" for the audition and passed, despite having been together as a five−piece group for less that 24 hours! Oh, yes, the name. Pentatonix is named for the pentatonic scale, which has five (penta) tones just as Pentatonix has five (Penta) singers. In other words, it's a fancier way of saying they're now "The Quintet." They won The Sing Off that season (all of the performances are available on TH-cam), in which they received a substantial cash prize AND a record contract with Epic Records. They pooled their prize winnings together and all moved to Los Angeles, and all got apartments right next door to each other in the same building. But just a week later, Epic dropped them because the marketing people didn′t think an acappella group could sell records. Instead of giving up, they were determined and began recording their own songs on TH-cam, hiring Ben Bram as their producer and arranger. These usually consisted of the five of them sitting on a couch and performing cover songs live. Several of the videos went viral, and Sony (the parent company of Epic) decided to give them another chance by placing them on one of their smaller labels, Madison Gate. They released two secular EPs and one Christmas EP on Madison Gate, all of which were strong sellers. But when their cover of a medley of songs by Daft Punk not only went super−viral, but also won them their first Grammy, they were promoted all the way up to RCA Records, Sony′s top label. They began writing and producing their own songs in addition to their covers, began putting out a Christmas album just about annually (which has become their best−selling genre), and have had multi−platinum album sales, sold−out world tours, and have won two additional Grammys. Avi began getting burned out with all of the touring and heavy recording schedule, was suffering from anxiety and personal problems, and learned that his mother had been diagnosed with cancer in 2017. He announced he was departing from the group and taking some time away from the music industry. Matt Sallee (from Baltimore) joined them in September 2017. He did only become official when they renewed their RCA contract in February 2018, but he recorded with them in September as a featured artist and went on their Christmas tour as a featured artist, as well. When he attended the audition for the group, he had already mastered the Bass part for most if not all their past catalogue. He was successful and has proved that he fits in well with the group. If you think there have been other changes to the line up - look again. This is the ONLY change. Kirstie and Mitch are like chameleons and change looks frequently. After a year away from music, Avi has now returned as a phenomenal solo artist in the Folk/Americana/Roots genre. Ben Bram has been in charge of their production, including arranging and directing from the beginning. He is often referred to as the sixth member. Scott and Kevin are major players in the arrangements, but every member contributes. good watch is "The Recording of Evergreen" where a camera was invited into the studio for the second week of recording/ Also, all members are songwriters for both Pentatonix and their own solo work. Ed Boyer who mixes everything of theirs (even the HWB Livestream) is the one who pulled Ben Bram into the sing off in the first place. The 3 Grammys they’ve won include…. (1)Daft Punk for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella…… (2)Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella…. (3) Jolene w/Dolly Parton for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. They were nominated for a 4th Grammy for their album “Evergreen” for Best Traditional Vocal Album. They were also nominated for a 5th Grammy award for their album “Holidays Around The World” for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. They have a star on the Hollywood walk of fame installed in February 2023. THEY ARE THE ONLY ACAPELLA GROUP WITH A STAR!!!! UPDATE: Pentatonix has also done 9 intros for Thursday Night Football based on their original song “sing”. Links for 3 of them are th-cam.com/video/HrruJptmbKU/w-d-xo.html and th-cam.com/video/zTUSB4iwTII/w-d-xo.html and th-cam.com/video/e2pvITc9a3U/w-d-xo.html UPDATE: Pentatonix has done a cameo appearance in the new movie “Candy Cane Lane” starring Eddie Murphy. They are the carolers. UPDATE: Pentatonix sang the National Anthem at the 2023 College Football National Championship game. Link is th-cam.com/video/fqWY2EUGlgk/w-d-xo.html UPDATE: They came in 3rd in the 2023 Masked Singer performing as "California Rolls" being unmasked in May 23. UPDATE: The trio of Scott, Mitch, and Kirstie also appeared as guest stars in an episode of the crime drama "Bones." Scott's song, "Light in the Hallway," sung by Avi, was played as the credits rolled. UPDATE: Pentatonix was featured in the movie "Pitch Perfect 2" as a Canadian a Capella group. Kirstie became a new mum which caused a pause in touring after their Evergreen Christmas tour 2021. Mid March 2023 Kirstie has announced that she is engaged to Ben Hausdorff, their videographer. UPDATE…Kirsten and Ben got married 04/24/24. It is an often debated subject among the Pentaholics as to just how soon we introduce the "Beginners Guide" as we don't want to overdo the introduction. This is a compilation of snips of a whole load of songs which PTX have released. It highlights each member with some of their solos and then a brief history in video. It is quite long - 14+ minutes and is a little dated now (Feb 2020) but is a good watch th-cam.com/video/lDxIfwfCmQE/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUdYmVnaW5uZXJzIGd1aWRlIHRvIHBlbnRhdG9uaXg%3D. Things you need to know because if you get these wrong “Pentaholics” will come after you with pitch forks and torches! Ha Ha Ha!! 1- There is NO Auto-Tune; what you hear is actually what they sing. They really are that good. One exception is the 90's Dance Medley where Cher used auto-tune as an effect - so they had to. 2- What produces everything that you hear in the video, you see in the official video. If there is an instrument used in the music, you see it on screen. In the 2022 Christmas album, there are some instruments not featured throughout the album. 3- They never release something on video they can’t reproduce with the exact same quality live on-stage.
Your High School days leads you Cheerleader and Sing, which includes fans and each members name as ending credits. Their "90's Dance Medley" will cause you to relive moments of your life. It's Amazing when you remember the trio was born 1992-1994. They make you want to explore their other "Evolution of .... Michael Jackson/Music was first, but Beyonce, Rhianna, and Grande all aproved.
You wouldn’t be the first person to let out a swear word of shock and awe when hearing them (Sara Bareilles, one of the judges of the Sing Off TV show where the group started out, was probably the first 😊). Loving your PTX journey! I’m here for the ride 👏🏻. Can’t wait for Daft Punk!! I recommend you keep that very cool hat on when you’re watching Daft Punk. It maaaay help keep your brains in your head 😜🤯🔥.
There Not Instruments Made Me Laugh Because Yesssss They Really Are ... All There Voices Can Do Incredible Things They Don't Need Real Instruments All They Need Is There Voices... And Yesssss Mitch Can Do That Without Anything It's His Real Voice Just Like Kevin Doing Drums ... Pentatonix Is Voices But Also A Whole Band ... :)
Pentatonix songs suggestions: **List may contain some songs you may have reacted to** Hallelujah, The Sound of Silence, Daft Punk, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Cheerleader (OMI Cover), 12 Days Of Christmas, Can You Feel the Love Tonight, Bohemian Rhapsody, Mad World, Wizard of Ahhhs (a montage of several modern songs made to tell the classic story of wizard of oz), Radioactive, Problem, Say Something, Kiss From a Rose (live vevo), Jolene, Royals, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies, Be my eyes, Sing, Coffee in Bed, the Prayer, Blinding Lights, Dreams. SO MANY MORE TOO MANY TO LIST BUT THIS IS A GOOD START. ENJOY YOUR JOURNEY TO THE RABBIT HOLE KNOWN AS… PENTATONIX.
Your PTX reactions are a joy to watch. I agree with you. It is too much to listen to all that's going on at once. As you are now a new Pentaholic, I am pretty sure you are going to listen to it more than this one time. When playing it again, try to focus on one member's voice throughout the whole song. It's amazing how you'll be able to tune out everyone else and only hear that particular person clearly. Will be looking for your next reaction. ❤️
If it's any help, the original bass singer, Avi Kaplan, has his own channel and he's still amazing. If you'd enjoy listening to Bohemian Rapsody from a different perspective, look up Dan Vascs performance. He does all the vocals so when it sounds like a group it's all him. It's mind boggling!!
I just subbed. Thank you for appreciating their talent. It’s OK for you to mouth the words, but I would appreciate it if you didn’t sing along. Very distracting. Thank you for wearing headphones and for curbing your cursing.
I did not find his comments excessive. There are some reactors who I think pause WAY too because they break up the flow of the entire reaction but I just didn’t think he stopped too often or too long. However, I do understand this is a subjective preference for all of us
You are a Pentaholic! Welcome to our group. Don't worry about being slow on bringing these in. We will be here. Pentaholics are VERY loyal.❤
Pentatonix Bohemian Rhapsody Insights:
So, some things to know about this cover and video: -It took PTX years to get the arrangement to where they felt they could do the original masterpiece justice. -The cover, and especially the video, was meant to be an homage to Queen.
Some of the moments paying respect were:
1.The mono-recording of the line "easy come, easy go" followed by the panning of the voices from left to right on the line "little high, little low" (which is how the original was recorded),
2. Obviously the flashlights being used to mimic the lighting on the operatic part of the original video,
3. The four shooting stars to represent the four members of Queen, as well as acknowledge the fact that Dr. Brian May is an astrophysicist,
4. The overhead shot of them lying on the couch is to represent the Sheer Heart Attack album cover.
5. When Mitch lies down on the couch, singing "Too late, My time has come," they're referring to Freddie Mercury's death (the foreshadowing was, of course, unintentional on Freddie's part; there's no way he could have known about AIDS, thank goodness). The other four are walking next to the couch to serve as Mitch's pall bearers.
The megaphone was just a prop. It is not needed to reproduce the electric guitar distortion. -PTX can, and does, perform this live with no backing track...something even Queen and the Great Freddie Mercury could not do.
Freddy once said he didn't care what people did with his music as long as they "...don't make it boring, darling!", so I think he would absolutely approve.
They were indeed on an actual road and luckily, there actually is a behind the scenes for the making of this one that you can watch! The link is: th-cam.com/video/Q8ugJnIG_Lk/w-d-xo.html
Also when Brian Mays heard it... he posted it on his web site with the word "ENJOY”.
The overall video--with the "living room" and couch--is an homage to Pentatonix's own journey as a group. They lost their record deal right after winning the Sing Off and moving to LA, so they started putting out videos on TH-cam, performing covers. They would sit on the couch in Kevin (beatboxer) and Avi's (bass) living room and just record themselves on Mitch's (counter tenor who took the lead on this song) iPad. Some of their earliest videos went viral and they eventually were able to secure a new deal, record an EP, go on tour, release chart-topping albums and win three Grammy awards...so they moved out of the living room and down this new, unknown road. At the end of the day, though, they're still the same choir-nerds they've always been; just happy to sit together on a couch and sing.
Love your delivery and admitting to being a fan boy. I'll be back for more.
Occasionally I'll find myself listening to a song five times in a row, concentrating on a different performer each time. Sometimes it's the only way to figure out what everyone is doing, and "Bohemian Rhapsody" is a prime example of a song that makes me want to do this.
The audio panning on "little high, little low" is a direct quote from Queen. If you listen to Queen's original you'll hear the same panning on the same phrase.
#Pentatonix loves Queen, and they love "Bohemian Rhapsody," so they always wanted to cover this song, but they feared that they couldn't do it justice, so they decided to wait until they were sure they were ready. That took them five years, but it was worth the wait - they were definitely ready.
In the early days of Pentatonix, after Epic reneged on the recording contract Pentatonix had "won" on _The Sing-Off,_ Pentatonix started posting to TH-cam; it was the only way they COULD publish their music. A lot of those early TH-cam videos show the five of them sitting on a couch, with the trio on the back of the couch and Avi and Kevin on the seat in front of them, just five very young people singing their hearts out, making their dream come true. Note that this is the configuration we see them in at the beginning and end of "Bohemian Rhapsody," which is one reason the couch needs to move - it's taking Pentatonix (and us) on a trip down Memory Lane.
The more important reason the couch moves is that it's standing in for the car in _Wayne's World,_ where Wayne and Garth introduced a whole new generation to the genius of Queen by putting a tape of "Bohemian Rhapsody" into the car's tape player.
The couch was motorized, and not very well balanced. (Note that when they're sitting on it their feet don't quite reach the ground. The little curtain thing on the bottom was added to hide the motor.) It kept trying to tip over during the filming and actually managed to throw Kevin off at one point. There was a small platform attached to the back so that Kirstin could climb on the couch from behind - Scott, being a foot taller than Kirstin, didn't need it.
When Mitch lies down on the couch, singing "Too late, My time has come," they're referring to Freddie Mercury's death (the foreshadowing was, of course, unintentional on Freddie's part; there's no way he could have known about AIDS, thank goodness). The other four are walking next to the couch to serve as Mitch's pall bearers.
Many people think the megaphone is distorting Mitch's voice to make it sound more like an electric guitar, but the megaphone actually has nothing to do with it. It wasn't turned on, and couldn't have distorted Mitch's voice even if it had been - it was just a megaphone. The electric guitar is all Mitch. Mitch happened to see the megaphone lying around on the set and thought it would make a cool prop, so it's been confusing people ever since.
During the "Bismillah" argument, note that Scott, whose range includes both bass and tenor registers, is actually singing along with both the high and low sides of the argument. Scott has said that this rapid switching is the hardest part of the song for him.
When the camera pans up to show us the starry night sky during Mitch's second guitar solo, it's meant as a tribute to Queen's lead guitarist, Brian May, who has a doctorate in astrophysics.
The four shooting stars honor the four members of Queen.
When the camera pans back down to show Pentatonix lying on the couch together it's meant to recall the cover art for Queen's "Sheer Heart Attack" album.
And when this official video was first released, Brian May posted a link to it on all his social media accounts with the comment: "Enjoy."
One of the best songs ever written but very few do it justice as you said they do !
You will keep falling in love with them - one of their specialty is doing "evolution of" videos where they mash a number of songs together - they did one for Rihanna, Ariana Grande, Michael Jackson, and their 90's Dance video is so good! They never disappoint,
Love the fanboying! Yes, they did an amazing job with this song. It took them 5 years of working at it to feel confident enough to do the video and to do the song (and Queen) full justice. They suceeded!! Dr Brian May, lead guitarist for Queen, put it up on his social media, saying simply..."Enjoy!".
That megaphone is simply a prop. Mitch has done this song on stage a few times and doesn't need it. Yes...they've done this live. They do use a choir for the "Bismillah..." portion because they need the extra vocals, but other than that, it's exactly the same as the sound from the official video.
Really looking forward to more PTX!!
If you are interested in how they put this video together there is a PENTATONIX BEHIND THE SCENES BOHEMIAN RAPSODY video that shows this. It looks mostly at the visuals (not the vocals), but is still very interesting.
I’m so pleased you have such a deep love for Bohemian Rhapsody and have found a group whom you respect to perform the piece well enough as a tribute to Queen and Freddy Mercury. How lucky for you, you still have the original and now you have ANOTHER quality version to listen to when you are in that mood 😊. If you enjoyed “Hallelujah” then I recommend “Say Something”, a devastatingly beautiful song that I have seen move even male reactors to tears, so be prepared.
Beautiful reaction. Thanks!
Pentatonix History…..composed by Alan Freeman updated by Perry Stevenson
They won The Sing Off in 2011. They made a guest starring appearance on America′s Got Talent as non−competitors a couple of years after that.
The founding members are:-
Scott Hoying (tall blond guy, natural baritone but has an impressive five−to−six octave range, can go all the way up to high tenor and down to bass, sings the bass lines when the usual bass singer takes the lead);
Kirstin "Kirstie" (Rhymes with "Thirsty") Maldonado (the only female member, natural mezzo soprano, but can go down to low alto and as high as upper soprano, also can sing in whistle notes that are off the scale); For a time in 2018 between the group’s tours, had the female lead on Broadway in the production of “Kinky Boots”.
Mitch Grassi (a true contra−tenor, can hit high notes in his chest voice with ease and go WAY higher in his falsetto, also with ease);
Avriel "Avi" Kaplan (dark beard and long hair), true basso profundo, trained as an opera singer, also can go up into the tenor range; and
Kevin "KO" Olusola (beatboxer extraordinaire, also is a world−class cellist who plays cello on some of their songs, has a beautiful high tenor voice and gets occasional lead vocal solos as well, graduated pre−med from Yale and speaks several languages including Mandarin Chinese).
Kirstie, Scott & Mitch grew up together in Arlington, Texas, and began performing together as children in local youth musical theater. They ended up in high school together and performed in the choir. While there, they formed an a cappella group called The Trio which had several performance videos go viral on TH-cam, most notably a cover of Lady Gaga′s "Telephone". The three of them are best friends and consider themselves to be almost siblings.
Scott & Kirstie (who were a class year ahead of Mitch) both graduated high school in 2010 and went their separate ways to different colleges, Scott at USC and Kirstie at Oklahoma.
While at USC, Scott joined a USC−based a cappella group called the SoCal VoCals, where he met alumnus Ben Bram, who was now an arranger and vocal coach for the NBC TV show The Sing Off, an a cappella competition show. Ben convinced Scott to get The Trio to audition for the show. The three reunited (Mitch had to skip high school graduation ceremonies to go) in Los Angeles for the audition.
They found out that the rules had changed, so they needed at least five members to audition. Ben put them together with Avi (a native of Visalia, California), who he knew from Avi′s performing days at Mount San Antonio College in California. They found Kevin (from Kentucky) through one of his TH-cam videos that had gone viral featuring him playing the cello and beatboxing at the same time, a talent that Kevin coined as "Cello−Boxing".
Kevin arrived in Los Angeles literally the day before the audition! Scott came up with the name "Pentatonix" after the pentatonic scale. They performed a re−arrangement of "The Telephone" for the audition and passed, despite having been together as a five−piece group for less that 24 hours!
Oh, yes, the name. Pentatonix is named for the pentatonic scale, which has five (penta) tones just as Pentatonix has five (Penta) singers. In other words, it's a fancier way of saying they're now "The Quintet."
They won The Sing Off that season (all of the performances are available on TH-cam), in which they received a substantial cash prize AND a record contract with Epic Records. They pooled their prize winnings together and all moved to Los Angeles, and all got apartments right next door to each other in the same building.
But just a week later, Epic dropped them because the marketing people didn′t think an acappella group could sell records.
Instead of giving up, they were determined and began recording their own songs on TH-cam, hiring Ben Bram as their producer and arranger. These usually consisted of the five of them sitting on a couch and performing cover songs live.
Several of the videos went viral, and Sony (the parent company of Epic) decided to give them another chance by placing them on one of their smaller labels, Madison Gate. They released two secular EPs and one Christmas EP on Madison Gate, all of which were strong sellers.
But when their cover of a medley of songs by Daft Punk not only went super−viral, but also won them their first Grammy, they were promoted all the way up to RCA Records, Sony′s top label.
They began writing and producing their own songs in addition to their covers, began putting out a Christmas album just about annually (which has become their best−selling genre), and have had multi−platinum album sales, sold−out world tours, and have won two additional Grammys.
Avi began getting burned out with all of the touring and heavy recording schedule, was suffering from anxiety and personal problems, and learned that his mother had been diagnosed with cancer in 2017. He announced he was departing from the group and taking some time away from the music industry.
Matt Sallee (from Baltimore) joined them in September 2017. He did only become official when they renewed their RCA contract in February 2018, but he recorded with them in September as a featured artist and went on their Christmas tour as a featured artist, as well. When he attended the audition for the group, he had already mastered the Bass part for most if not all their past catalogue. He was successful and has proved that he fits in well with the group.
If you think there have been other changes to the line up - look again. This is the ONLY change. Kirstie and Mitch are like chameleons and change looks frequently.
After a year away from music, Avi has now returned as a phenomenal solo artist in the Folk/Americana/Roots genre.
Ben Bram has been in charge of their production, including arranging and directing from the beginning. He is often referred to as the sixth member. Scott and Kevin are major players in the arrangements, but every member contributes. good watch is "The Recording of Evergreen" where a camera was invited into the studio for the second week of recording/
Also, all members are songwriters for both Pentatonix and their own solo work.
Ed Boyer who mixes everything of theirs (even the HWB Livestream) is the one who pulled Ben Bram into the sing off in the first place.
The 3 Grammys they’ve won include….
(1)Daft Punk for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella……
(2)Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella….
(3) Jolene w/Dolly Parton for Best Country Duo/Group Performance.
They were nominated for a 4th Grammy for their album “Evergreen” for Best Traditional Vocal Album.
They were also nominated for a 5th Grammy award for their album “Holidays Around The World” for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.
They have a star on the Hollywood walk of fame installed in February 2023. THEY ARE THE ONLY ACAPELLA GROUP WITH A STAR!!!!
UPDATE: Pentatonix has also done 9 intros for Thursday Night Football based on their original song “sing”. Links for 3 of them are th-cam.com/video/HrruJptmbKU/w-d-xo.html and th-cam.com/video/zTUSB4iwTII/w-d-xo.html and th-cam.com/video/e2pvITc9a3U/w-d-xo.html
UPDATE: Pentatonix has done a cameo appearance in the new movie “Candy Cane Lane” starring Eddie Murphy. They are the carolers.
UPDATE: Pentatonix sang the National Anthem at the 2023 College Football National Championship game. Link is th-cam.com/video/fqWY2EUGlgk/w-d-xo.html
UPDATE: They came in 3rd in the 2023 Masked Singer performing as "California Rolls" being unmasked in May 23.
UPDATE: The trio of Scott, Mitch, and Kirstie also appeared as guest stars in an episode of the crime drama "Bones." Scott's song, "Light in the Hallway," sung by Avi, was played as the credits rolled.
UPDATE: Pentatonix was featured in the movie "Pitch Perfect 2" as a Canadian a Capella group.
Kirstie became a new mum which caused a pause in touring after their Evergreen Christmas tour 2021. Mid March 2023 Kirstie has announced that she is engaged to Ben Hausdorff, their videographer. UPDATE…Kirsten and Ben got married 04/24/24.
It is an often debated subject among the Pentaholics as to just how soon we introduce the "Beginners Guide" as we don't want to overdo the introduction. This is a compilation of snips of a whole load of songs which PTX have released. It highlights each member with some of their solos and then a brief history in video. It is quite long - 14+ minutes and is a little dated now (Feb 2020) but is a good watch th-cam.com/video/lDxIfwfCmQE/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUdYmVnaW5uZXJzIGd1aWRlIHRvIHBlbnRhdG9uaXg%3D.
Things you need to know because if you get these wrong “Pentaholics” will come after you with pitch forks and torches! Ha Ha Ha!!
1- There is NO Auto-Tune; what you hear is actually what they sing. They really are that good. One exception is the 90's Dance Medley where Cher used auto-tune as an effect - so they had to.
2- What produces everything that you hear in the video, you see in the official video. If there is an instrument used in the music, you see it on screen. In the 2022 Christmas album, there are some instruments not featured throughout the album.
3- They never release something on video they can’t reproduce with the exact same quality live on-stage.
Love PTX! Fun reaction! Can't wait for more!
Another great reaction! I knew you would be a Pentaholic! Looking forward to Daft Punk and all the others after!
My favorite group
Your High School days leads you Cheerleader and Sing, which includes fans and each members name as ending credits. Their "90's Dance Medley" will cause you to relive moments of your life.
It's Amazing when you remember the trio was born 1992-1994. They make you want to explore their other "Evolution of .... Michael Jackson/Music was first, but Beyonce, Rhianna, and Grande all aproved.
You wouldn’t be the first person to let out a swear word of shock and awe when hearing them (Sara Bareilles, one of the judges of the Sing Off TV show where the group started out, was probably the first 😊). Loving your PTX journey! I’m here for the ride 👏🏻. Can’t wait for Daft Punk!! I recommend you keep that very cool hat on when you’re watching Daft Punk. It maaaay help keep your brains in your head 😜🤯🔥.
There Not Instruments Made Me Laugh Because Yesssss They Really Are ... All There Voices Can Do Incredible Things They Don't Need Real Instruments All They Need Is There Voices... And Yesssss Mitch Can Do That Without Anything It's His Real Voice Just Like Kevin Doing Drums ... Pentatonix Is Voices But Also A Whole Band ... :)
Pentatonix songs suggestions:
**List may contain some songs you may have reacted to**
Hallelujah, The Sound of Silence, Daft Punk, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Cheerleader (OMI Cover), 12 Days Of Christmas, Can You Feel the Love Tonight, Bohemian Rhapsody, Mad World, Wizard of Ahhhs (a montage of several modern songs made to tell the classic story of wizard of oz), Radioactive, Problem, Say Something, Kiss From a Rose (live vevo), Jolene, Royals, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies, Be my eyes, Sing, Coffee in Bed, the Prayer, Blinding Lights, Dreams.
SO MANY MORE TOO MANY TO LIST BUT THIS IS A GOOD START. ENJOY YOUR JOURNEY TO THE RABBIT HOLE KNOWN AS… PENTATONIX.
Your PTX reactions are a joy to watch. I agree with you. It is too much to listen to all that's going on at once. As you are now a new Pentaholic, I am pretty sure you are going to listen to it more than this one time. When playing it again, try to focus on one member's voice throughout the whole song. It's amazing how you'll be able to tune out everyone else and only hear that particular person clearly. Will be looking for your next reaction. ❤️
Oh hon I've watched this video dozens of times and I still find something new every time. Great reaction. ❤ the Avi ❤
Great job. Sunned for more PTX
Great reaction. Recommend their cover of The Prayer.
That’s all Mitch with the guitar solo
They also have live versions (without the prop megaphone 📣) enjoy this Journey!
Love your reaction...mitch with a megaphone
The megaphone is a prop. It's Mitch all the way. Please check out their live concert . Awesome
If it's any help, the original bass singer, Avi Kaplan, has his own channel and he's still amazing.
If you'd enjoy listening to Bohemian Rapsody from a different perspective, look up Dan Vascs performance. He does all the vocals so when it sounds like a group it's all him. It's mind boggling!!
Loved your reaction. Looking forward to the next PTX one
Subscribed! Can't wait for the next one.
Yes, the megaphone is a prop!
This was PTX's homage to Queen.
Please think about doing a reaction to an original of theirs called Love Again. Avi is absolutely mind blowing in it!
❤
It's K-ur-sty
Seems to be a guarantee of views and subscripts! ⚡⚡🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥⚡⚡
I just subbed. Thank you for appreciating their talent. It’s OK for you to mouth the words, but I would appreciate it if you didn’t sing along. Very distracting. Thank you for wearing headphones and for curbing your cursing.
Couldnt watch this as u talk to much!let the song finish before talki g
I did not find his comments excessive. There are some reactors who I think pause WAY too because they break up the flow of the entire reaction but I just didn’t think he stopped too often or too long. However, I do understand this is a subjective preference for all of us