This Sunday, the Force will bewith choral students and orchestra nerds around the world. The 2015 American Music Awards will pay homage to the imminent release of the newest Star Wars installment,The Force Awakens, and the series legendary score composer John Williams by enlisting the chart-topping group Pentatonix. The vocal quintet will lend its pristine harmonies to a medley of the Star Wars score backed by a full orchestra.
The a cappella group, winner of Season 3of the reality competition The Sing-Off, is known for its ebullient and inventive arrangements of songs by popular artists from Beyonc to Michael Jackson. The outfithas released three covers albums, one of which was last years holiday juggernaut Thats Christmas to Me, which outpaced Taylor Swifts 1989 for the topspot on iTunes. After such successes, Pentatonix made the strategic, albeit risky move into the realm of original music on theirOctober release, Pentatonix, which debutedat Number One. The groups latest single, the lilting, infatuated-with-love song Cant Sleep Love is one of the rare times youll hear instrument-less music on Top 40 radio.
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For Kevin Olusola, the groups resident beatboxer and an Owensboro, Kentucky, native who grew up playing classical cello, Sundays performance is the opportunity of a lifetime. In between rehearsals for the AMAs, Olusola spoke to Rolling Stoneabout the upcoming performance and binge-watching his favorite Star Wars movies on tour (his favorite is The Empire Strikes Back).
Lets talk about Star Wars. What can we expect from Pentatonixs performance on Sunday?
We just came out of rehearsal and its going to be epic.
Did you guys write the arrangement for the medley?
It was really a collaboration with the orchestra. We were ecstatic when they asked us if we would be willing to work with John Williams orchestra. Our background is in choral music, so this felt like a chance to revisit and re-study certain classical techniques. It sounds so amazing. Our fans are going to be geeking out, because a lot of them are choral students, and I think theyre going to get a huge kick out of this.
Have you met John Williams yet?
We havent yet, but I hope we get to during another rehearsal. I was classically trained on the cello, so its unbelievable to me that were singing with him.
Hes such an iconic composer, from JawsandJurassic Park to Star Wars. When did you first become aware of him?
It had to be when I first saw E.T., I learned about Williams. Later on, I was reading Quincy Jones autobiography because hes a mentor and someone I really admire. I didnt realize how much Quincy had worked with Williams. Quincy was producing for Michael Jackson at the time E.T. came out, and he served as a producer for E.T. as well.
Are you a Star Wars fan?
Are you serious [laughs]? Absolutely.
When were on tour, Im planning on re-watching each Star Wars movie before we go onstage.
Does that mean youre a purist and against the Disney takeover of the franchise?
Not at all, Im definitely not against the Disney takeover. Star Wars is such a huge franchise, and Disney is the best suited to pour all the resources in it that the films require. Also, its J.J. Abrams, so you know itll be quality. And plus, looking at the previews, the movie actually looks like the original Star Wars movies. I mean, that probably took a lot of money and planning. When were on tour, Im planning on re-watching each movie before we go onstage; then Ill be ready to go for when the newest one comes out next month.
Star Wars is obviously a massive part of pop culture and Pentatonix has had some wild success in the last year. What does it feel like to get a taste of the pop-culture machine?
Im really happy about our trajectory because we didnt really start out in the pop light. We started on YouTube, growing our fan base organically. So I feel like the pop machine is really run by those core fans who are sharing our music because its different. Hopefully, it means we wont just be a flash in the pan, and were doing something that has longevity. The fans and the publicity the pop machine are so great, but its not really about that. We just love what we do.
Weve all seen that music awards shows can play it safe. So what, to you, makes a great awards-show performance?
I think it really depends on the type of song and artist. But, for example, we recently saw at the Country Music Awards Little Big Town perform their song Girl Crush. It was a very simple production, but the harmonies were so beautiful, they made you weep. Then you had Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton,two powerhouse vocalists,performing together. The chords, the harmonies the emotion was so palpable in the room and not a single person was sitting down.
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