Pentatonix!

The Methodist church in the St. Joseph's convent premises, Whitefield, Bangalore sang 'The first Noel' as the opening hymn on 2nd Dec. I love the cover on the hymn by Pentatonix. Their vocal range is a work of angels!

I also love the fact that two of the band members are openly gay. They threw caution to the winds and are living their truth. Not easy while working on Christian songs. They have my respect and admiration. Hope they inspire more people who are saddled by the expectations of their faith and are resigned to living double lives. It's amusing to see how fundamentalist Christians believe that God who is not limited by flesh worries about who someone has sex with. Perhaps, they would rather follow Paul and Peter than Jesus, who wouldn't refuse a party invitation from them ;)

Here's a quick snapshot:-

From left to right: Avi Kaplan, Kirstin Maldonado, Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, and Kevin Olusola

BIO

Three-time Grammy® Award-winning and multi-Platinum-selling Pentatonix has sold nearly 10 million albums worldwide and performed for hundreds of thousands of fans at their sold out shows across the globe. Their YouTube channel boasts more than 14.5 million subscribers, yielding over 3 billion video views. Their 2015 self-titled album is certified gold after debuting #1 on Billboard’s 200.

Additionally, nine of their albums reached the top 10 on Billboard’s 200 chart (2 at #1) and received multiple RIAA certifications for multi-platinum, platinum and gold selling albums and singles.  The group has had two holiday specials on NBC (watch 2017's A Very Pentatonix Christmas  here), released their tour documentary - On My Way Home - in 2015 and appeared in the feature film, Pitch Perfect 2.

Most recently, Pentatonix released a deluxe version of their certified Platinum 2016 holiday album A Pentatonix Christmas Deluxe and wrapped their sold-out A Pentatonix Christmas Tour in December.

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SCOTT HOYING

Scott is a songwriter and pianist who has been performing since the age of 8.  Following his graduation from Martin High School in Arlington, TX, Scott enrolled at USC where he joined the SoCal VoCals, a popular and accomplished campus a cappella group.  Involved with a variety of musical projects, Scott has been a finalist on CBS’ Star Search and has performed the National Anthem and “God Bless America” at numerous professional and collegiate sporting events, including home games for the Texas Rangers, Dallas Cowboys and Dallas Mavericks. 

MITCH GRASSI

Mitch is the youngest member of Pentatonix and a recent high school graduate (he was a high school senior when taping of The Sing-Off commenced).  In addition to immersing himself in music theater in Arlington, TX, Mitch’s music tastes skew heavily toward underground club and electronic music.  A veteran of many vocal and talent competitions, Mitch took first place at the Teen Talent Follies for his rendition of Scott Alan’s “Kiss the Air.”  Mitch is honing his skills in production and DJ-ing while excelling as a lead vocalist for Pentatonix. 

KIRSTIN MALDONADO

Kirstin is a National Hispanic Scholar and was a sophomore Music Theater major at The University of Oklahoma before joining Pentatonix.  She developed her vocal and performance skills during her eight years as a touring member at Theatre Arlington where she’d learned to sing eight-part harmonies.  She began her classical training during high school and was a member of the Texas All State Choir for three years.  A four-year show choir member and dance captain, Kirstin held numerous roles in local stage productions, performing at shows around the Metroplex, including Casa Manana and Bass Hall. 

KEVIN “K.O.” OLUSOLA

Kevin grew up in the small town of Owensboro, Kentucky, the son of a Nigerian psychiatrist and a Grenadian nurse.  At an early age, Kevin began learning piano, cello and saxophone.  He performed at Carnegie Hall twice as soloist on the cello and saxophone and has appeared on NPR’s “From The Top."  After finishing high school at Phillips Academy Andover, Kevin enrolled in Yale University where he was pre-med and majored in East Asian Studies.  He spent 18 months in Beijing becoming fluent in Chinese as a part of his Yale fellowship.  While in college, Kevin began developing his “celloboxing” skills and in 2009, he won second place in the “Celebrate and Collaborate with Yo-Yo Ma” international competition.  Ma would call Kevin's celloboxing version of "Dona Nobis Pacem" both “inventive and unexpected.”  In 2011, Kevin’s “Julie-O” celloboxing YouTube video was featured by CBS, AOL, Huffington Post and Washington Post, among others.  Kevin was also named one of 100 “History Makers in the Making” by NBC’s TheGrio and was hand-chosen by Quincy Jones to represent him in concert at the 2012 Montreux Jazz Festival alongside Bobby McFerrin and Chick Corea. On March 10th 2015, Kevin released his first solo album, The Renegade EP. courtesy of RCA Records. The album debuted #1 on Billboard Traditional Classical and Classical Crossover charts, in addition to staying #1 on iTunes classical albums for weeks as it featured classically reimagined versions of popular songs like “All of Me,” “Stay With Me,” and “Heart Attack,” as well as Kevin’s original composition “Renegade.”