Hips ‘n Harmony (pictured above) among other a cappella groups performed for the campus WOWcappella event on Saturday Sept. 7 on the Union Patio. All five Geneseo a cappella groups performed to kick off auditions season and entice possible new members (Rebecca Williamson/Assoc. news editor).
With the sunset in the background, the Union patio became crowded with eager listeners for the WOWCappella event on Saturday Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m. The event was for all five acapella groups to show off their various vibes before auditions begin to search for new members.
Each group sang three songs at the concert to highlight their unique musical styles and personalities. Between the Lines, Emmelodics, and Exit 8 are all-gender a cappella groups. Southside Boys is made up of male-identifying singers and Hips ‘n Harmony is made up of female-identifying singers.
Southside Boys kicked off the night with their traditional “Good Old A Cappella,” originally performed by The Nylons. Southside Boys members senior Andrew Weber, vice president Jack Grant and co-musical director senior George Perdomo were featured in the song, raising the energy of the night.
Emmelodics was next to perform. One of the songs featured a solo performed by Emmelodics member sophomore Lyndsay Tudman who sang a beautiful rendition of “when the party’s over” by Billie Eilish.
The group Hips ‘n Harmony performed third. Hips ‘n Harmony member junior Megan Anders closed out their set with a sassy rendition of “Before He Cheats,” originally by Carrie Underwood.
The fourth group to sing was Exit 8. Exit 8 member sophomore Nicole Acquavella sang a powerful version of “The Fire” by Bishop Briggs that had the audience cheering.
Between the Lines then stepped up to close off the night. Between the Lines member senior Destiny Parsons ended the concert with a crowd favorite “Tongue Tied” by Grouplove.
The audience could see the love put into every performance by each group. Griffin expressed her love for how a cappella allows her to sing with a group she considers family.
“I’ve always loved music from a young age, so being able to kind of immerse myself in a group that lets me engage in music is really helpful,” Griffin said. “I also just love a cappella because it really does give you the sort of family at Geneseo that you otherwise wouldn’t have access to.”
Devoe also shared her love for being in an a cappella group.
“I think the best parts about being in an a cappella [group] are honestly just being able to sing and blend with people for fun,” Devoe said. “I obviously chose to go to college and get a degree in English instead of doing singing, but this is my excuse—and all of our excuses—to just get together, destress and sing for fun because we all love doing it.”
Griffin said all five groups bond over a shared love of music.
“As a community, we all really get along because we all share this amazing love for music. I would just say that if you get to know each group you would notice different personalities that come through, but everyone seems to work together so seamlessly when we do get together and are able to join efforts,” Griffin said. “A cappella really is a giant, friendly and loving community.”
Between the Lines member junior Sara Devoe enjoys the relationships that come from joining an a cappella group.
“I think that honestly every year we take different people and it makes our group different,” Devoe said. “I feel like every time we get new people, they bring something to the group, and I can say that about every group.”
Auditions for Hips ‘n Harmony, Southside Boys and Emmelodics are on Friday Sept. 13 and auditions for Between the Lines and Exit 8 are on Saturday Sept. 14.