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FireFlyz | 55
What aresomeof thechallenges that you
face as an a
cappella
group? How do you
overcome them?
With five voices, you can’t cover much
sonic ground as you can with full produc-
tion elements. We compensate by either
stripping down our arrangements, or
carefully arranging them so they sound
fuller and more complex.
As artistes, who do you look up to and
why?
One of our main influences, both in terms
of music and work ethic, is Imogen Heap.
Not only is she an incredibly gifted vocal-
ist, she’s also a mastermind at creating
and composing her own music. She’s a
one-woman orchestra.
How far do you plan to take your music?
Ultimately, what do you hope to achieve?
We want to reach all corners of the earth!
We have so many goals, but overall, we
just want our music to touch people’s’
hearts.
What can we expect from Pentatonix in
the near future?
A lot more original material, more video
content, and a bigger and better tour!
Tell us about your role in Pitch Perfect 2.
We’re a rival group from Canada called
the
Mountie Rhythms
. We have a brief
cameo at the end of the film. It was
amazing to be on set and to see how big
a production a major motion picture is.
Will you be coming to Kuala Lumpur to
perform?
No plans right now to perform there, but
I’m hoping sometime in the future. We
love to travel to new places!
What advice would you give to other
aspiring a
cappella
groups?
Don’t be afraid to do something different.
It’s obviously alright to be influenced
by other
a cappella
groups, but don’t
compare yourself to them. That will only
create unrealistic expectations. Be your
own group and most importantly, ENJOY
what you’re doing.
What does the near future look like for
Pentatonix?
We are dead set on creating a perfect
original album this year. We’ve already
begun working on it, and we’re all ex-
tremely excited. Can’t wait to share it
with the world.
From left: Avi Kaplan,
Kristie Maldonado, Scott
Hoying, Mitch Grassi and
Kevin Olusola