A capella (Ylvis song)

Last updated
"a capella"
Single by Ylvis
ReleasedJanuary 5, 2016
Length3:52
Label Discovery Networks Norway
Songwriter(s) Vegard Ylvisåker, Bård Ylvisåker, Christian Loechstoeer, Lars Bleiklie Devik [1]

"a capella" is a song and music video by the Norwegian duo Ylvis. It parodies a cappella groups like Pentatonix. Ylvis revealed "a capella" on I kveld med YLVIS on TVNorge on January 5, 2016. Three days after the song's release, it had 250,000 views. [2]

Contents

Music video

Ylvis revealed the music video and song "a capella" on I kveld med YLVIS on TVNorge on January 5, 2016. [2] It parodies a cappella groups like Pentatonix. [3] [4] [5] In the music video, a small boy is bullied. Ylvis brothers Vegard and Bård Ylvisåker head an a cappella group that attempts to save and galvanize the bullied child through their singing and joyful facial expressions. [3] [6] They are able to defeat the bullies because they have the "scary" talent of being capable of "sing[ing] a song in any musical style". [7]

Caricaturing rousing a cappella songs, the song exploits frequent a cappella customs such as fake words, grinning "like you know Jesus personally", and a male beatboxer. [6] The song includes rock and rap, and a cappella members make trumpet and drum sounds. [7] One of Ylvis' fictional words is "Boodelooap", a fictional Nigerian soft drink. [3] [6] Boodelooap is cherry-red and stored in a long tall bottle.

Critical reception

L.V. Anderson of Slate wrote that the song was "a pitch-perfect spoof of self-serious a cappella groups like Pentatonix". [3] Anderson noted that "purists" could argue that the song is not "strictly" a cappella because it likely has had electronic music components added after production though "that's not really the point". [3]

Entertainment Weekly 's Dylan Kickham said the song was "fairly timely" because a cappella is "still very much in the public eye". [6] Kickham cited three examples of a cappella's high visibility: Pentatonix is drawing large crowds, Pitch Slapped opened on TV network Lifetime, and the Pitch Perfect franchise is making Pitch Perfect 3. [6]

Time 's Olivia B. Waxman said the song was "aca-awesome". [7] Hoai-Tran Bu wrote in USA Today that the song was "a spot-on parody of a cappella groups that is both amazing and odd". She praised their performance for "delv[ing] into just what makes a cappella cool", citing the combating of bullying, the singing like they personally know Jesus, and props like leather straps and matching woolen hats. [8]

Jojo Girard of WFGR called the song a "a weird tribute to a capella groups" that was "wonderful". [9] KBMX's Tony Hart said the music video was "a funny look" at a cappella groups, noting "[t]his parody is perfect, right down to the reference to the leather straps these groups always seem to wear, and what's with all the smiling?" [10] KSL's John Clyde praised the song for being "pretty darn catchy and incredibly clever". [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A cappella</span> Group or solo singing without instrumental sound

Music performed a cappella, less commonly a capella, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term a cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato musical styles. In the 19th century, a renewed interest in Renaissance polyphony, coupled with an ignorance of the fact that vocal parts were often doubled by instrumentalists, led to the term coming to mean unaccompanied vocal music. The term is also used, rarely, as a synonym for alla breve.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penn Masala</span> American a cappella group

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deke Sharon</span> American a cappella singer and arranger

Deke Sharon is an American singer, arranger, composer, director, producer, pioneer, and teacher of a cappella music, and is one of the leaders and promoters of the contemporary a cappella community. He has been referred to as "the father of contemporary a cappella" by some authors, and "the godfather of a cappella" by others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beelzebubs</span> Musical artist

The Tufts Beelzebubs, frequently referred to as "The Bubs", is a male a cappella group of students from Tufts University that performs a mix of pop, rock, R&B, and other types of music while spreading their motto of "Fun through Song". Founded in 1962, they have toured in Europe, Asia, South America, and North America, and they competed on NBC's The Sing-Off in December 2009, finishing in second place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ylvis</span> Norwegian comedy duo

Ylvis are a Norwegian comedy duo consisting of brothers Vegard and Bård Ylvisåker. They debuted as professional variety artists in 2000 and have since appeared in several countries in variety shows, comedy concerts, television shows, radio shows and music videos. They hosted the Norwegian talk show I kveld med Ylvis (2011–2016). Their song and music video "The Fox ", written and filmed for the talk show, went viral on YouTube in September 2013. The video has over 1.1 billion views as of February 2023. They released an album called Ylvis: Volume I, a compilation of ten older singles. In 2018, the brothers released a series titled Stories from Norway, in which they collected headlining stories from Norway and presented them as short musical documentaries to address satire, fun and comedy.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noteworthy (vocal group)</span> American all-female a cappella group

BYU Noteworthy is a seven-member, female Brigham Young University (BYU) a cappella group, based in Provo, Utah, United States. They won 1st place at the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) in 2007 and appeared on the first season of NBC's a cappella competition reality show The Sing-Off in 2009. Esther Yoder formed the group in 2003, aided by members of BYU's Vocal Point. Noteworthy began operating under the direction of the Performing Arts Management (PAM) at BYU in 2014. One of their most popular music videos is a cover of Amazing Grace, which won the Contemporary A Cappella Society (CARA) award for Best Religious Video and has garnered millions of views on YouTube since its release. Noteworthy has released six albums since its formation in 2003. In 2018, Noteworthy performed "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" for a Mormon Message for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentatonix</span> American a cappella group

Pentatonix are an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, consisting of vocalists Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kirstin Maldonado, Matt Sallee, and Kevin Olusola. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements with vocal harmonies, basslines, riffing, percussion, and beatboxing, they produce cover versions of modern pop works or Christmas songs, sometimes in the form of medleys, along with original material. Pentatonix was formed in 2011 and subsequently won the third season of NBC's The Sing-Off, receiving $200,000 and a recording contract with Sony Music. When Sony's Epic Records dropped the group after The Sing-Off, the group formed its YouTube channel, distributing its music through Madison Gate Records, a label owned by Sony Pictures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mitch Grassi</span> American singer

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avi Kaplan</span> American singer and songwriter

Avriel Benjamin Kaplan is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for being the former vocal bass of the a cappella group Pentatonix from 2011 to 2017. As a part of the group, he released five studio albums, won three Grammy Awards, and sold over six million albums.

<i>PTX, Volume 1</i> 2012 EP by Pentatonix

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)</span> 2013 electronic dance novelty song and viral video by Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis

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I kveld med YLVIS is a Norwegian talk show hosted by Bård and Vegard Ylvisåker, with Calle Hellevang-Larsen as a permanent sidekick. During season 2 Calle was replaced by David Batra due to obligations he had made with his comedy group Raske Menn and their show on the rival channel TV2. Magnus Devold is also a permanent part of the show and often contributes with several segments per show.

<i>Pitch Perfect 2</i> 2015 American film by Elizabeth Banks

Pitch Perfect 2 is a 2015 American musical comedy film directed and produced by Elizabeth Banks and written by Kay Cannon. It is a sequel to the 2012 film Pitch Perfect and the second installment in the Pitch Perfect film series. The film centers on the fictional Barden University Bellas, an all-female a cappella singing group, who try to beat out a competing German musical group in a world singing championship. The film features Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow, Skylar Astin, Adam DeVine, Anna Camp, Ben Platt, Hana Mae Lee, Alexis Knapp, Ester Dean, Kelly Jakle, Shelley Regner, John Michael Higgins, and Banks all reprising their roles from the previous film, now joined by Hailee Steinfeld, Katey Sagal, Birgitte Hjort Sørensen, and Flula Borg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentatonix discography</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scott Hoying</span> American singer and songwriter

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<i>PTX, Vol. IV: Classics</i> 2017 EP by Pentatonix

PTX, Vol. IV: Classics is the fifth extended play album by the a cappella group Pentatonix. It was released by RCA Records on April 7, 2017, and is their first EP since 2014's PTX, Vol. III. It is their final release with original member Avi Kaplan, who left the group later that year.

<i>PTX Presents: Top Pop, Vol. I</i> 2018 studio album by Pentatonix

PTX Presents: Top Pop, Vol. I is the sixth studio album by American a cappella group Pentatonix, released on April 13, 2018. It is their first album with bass vocalist Matt Sallee, and without original bass vocalist Avi Kaplan. It is also their first full-length album not to feature any original material.

Citizen Queen is an American girl group consisting of vocalists Kaedi Dalley, Cora Isabel, Nina Nelson, and Kaylah Sharve’. The group was formed in 2018 under the auspices of RCA Records, with mentorship from Pentatonix member Scott Hoying.

References

  1. ↑ "ASCAP Repertory entry for this song". ASCAP. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  2. 1 2 Nyland, Bjørn Kristian (2016-01-08). "Ny Ylvis-låt går verden rundt: Vil brødrene gjenta The Fox-suksessen?" [New Ylvis song goes around the world: Would brothers repeat The Fox-success?]. Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 2016-01-11. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Anderson, L.V. (2016-01-06). "Ylvis' New Music Video Explains Why A Cappella Groups Have Been Singing "Boodelooap" All This Time". Slate . Archived from the original on 2016-01-12. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  4. ↑ Mav (2016-01-06). "Vokální muzika je nejvíc, přesvědčují norští komedianti. Přemůže všechna bezpráví". Reflex (in Czech). Archived from the original on 2016-01-11. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  5. ↑ Rancken, David (2016-01-11). "Ylvis Has A New A Capella Hit". KLUV. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-01-13.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Kickham, Dylan (2016-01-06). "Ylvis parodies a cappella groups in new music video". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on 2016-01-11. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  7. 1 2 3 Waxman, Olivia B. (2016-01-06). "Watch the A Cappella Parody to End All A Cappella Parodies: "What Does the Fox Say?" group takes on a cappella". Time . Archived from the original on 2016-01-12. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  8. ↑ Bui, Hoai-Tran (2016-01-06). "What does the a cappella group say? Ylvis is back to find out". USA Today . Archived from the original on 2016-01-11. Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  9. ↑ Girard, Jojo (2016-01-12). "Ylvis : An A Capella Parody [Video]". WFGR . Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-01-13.
  10. ↑ Hart, Tony (2016-01-12). "Ylvis Takes on Groups Like Pentatonix with Their New Song 'A Capella'". KBMX. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-01-13.
  11. ↑ Clyde, John (2016-01-12). "Have You Seen This? The power of a cappella". KSL. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-01-13.
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