It was standing room only in Starbucks on Thursday Aug. 30 as students flocked to the cafe for WOW-Cappella, the fall semester’s inaugural a cappella concert. Exit 8, Hips n’ Harmony, Southside Boys and Between the Lines each performed three songs to start the school year and to give the audience a taste of their musical styles.
The performance started with Exit 8, a group that has existed since the early 2000s. Junior Elyssa Ramirez sang lead vocals for the group’s rendition of “Ego” by Beyoncé.
“Exit 8’s musical style focuses mostly on the pop genre,” Ramirez said. “I joined the group because it’s a great outlet for me that’s outside of my major.”
The group also performed “Mmmbop” by ‘90s band of brothers Hanson and “We are Golden” by singer-songwriter Mika.
Hips n’ Harmony – Geneseo’s all-female a cappella group – performed “This Love” by Maroon 5, “Come on Over” by Christina Aguilera and “Kaleidoscope Heart” by Sara Bareilles.
“We don’t like to limit ourselves to any one genre,” said Hips n’ Harmony President junior Ali Niemiec. “Whatever someone wants to sing, we try.”
Next up was Southside Boys, Geneseo’s oldest a cappella group, formed in the early ‘90s. President of Southside Boys senior Cory Young said that the boys are “very excited to be celebrating their 21st birthday this year.”
The all-male group performed its own interpretation of Bon Jovi’s “It’s My Life,” Michael Buble’s “Everything” and A Goofy Movie’s “I2I” in its set. The audience cheered wildly after Southside Boys’ impressive performance.
Last to showcase its vocal capabilities was Between the Lines, a coed group that formed in 2008. Senior Dan Gole said he and a few of his friends joined the group during his freshman year.
“We were nervous about auditioning by ourselves, so we all went together and stuck with it after that,” he said. As a part of its set, Between the Lines performed Bruno Mars’ popular song, “Marry You,” Rusted Roots’ “Send Me on My Way” and The Killers’ “All These Things That I’ve Done.” The audience contributed percussion by clapping along at the end of the song.
After their performances, each group raffled off five of their CDs and five tickets to the next a cappella concert, scheduled for Oct. 13 in Newton 202.