Since its 1998 rendition of “The 12 Days of Christmas” went viral on YouTube in 2006, the a cappella group Straight No Chaser has been gaining popularity all over the Midwest. The group will appear for the first time in Madison tonight at the Overture Center.
The 10-man a cappella group originated at Indiana University, but should not be confused with Indiana University’s Straight No Chaser amateur a cappella group that still performs there.
The original 10 members of the college group were signed to a five-record deal with Atlantic Records in 2008 and since then have toured the country and recorded three albums.
“We’re really excited about those three albums,” Straight No Chaser member Tyler Trepp said. “Two are holiday albums. Holiday Spirit [is the first one], and Christmas Cheers is the second one.”
The albums include favorites such as “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” and “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” but also include numbers such as “Who Spiked the Eggnog” and “The Christmas Can-Can.”
The group’s non-holiday album, With a Twist, was released in April 2010.
“We were No. 29 on billboards for our last non-holiday album [With a Twist], which is kind of an award within itself. I was pretty surprised about that. That was pretty cool,” Trepp said.
People cannot seem to get enough of the professional a cappella group – and for good reason.
“We were fortunate enough to go on the Jimmy Fallon show last year. It was a really cool experience for me. I’m a huge fan of the show, and when we got the call to go on it, I was pretty excited,” Trepp said. “So that was really fun for me and fun for the group as well.”
Straight No Chaser has put together a very diverse show. The group will be singing songs from all genres and eras – anything goes, from R&B to a little bit of Lady Gaga near the end of the performance.
“We do it all. Something for all age ranges,” Trepp said.
Along with Trepp, Straight No Chaser includes members Michael Luginbill, Randy Stine, David Roberts, Charlie Mechling, Jerome Collins, Walter Collins, Don Nottingham, Ryan Ahlwardt and Seggie Isho. Trepp attributes the group’s uniqueness to members’ comfortable personas.
“Our camaraderie onstage [makes us unique],” he said. “We are just 10 guys up there being ourselves, singing songs that we like to sing and having a good time, joking around onstage. We’re nobody different than we are off the stage. We’re just the same bunch of guys.”
Although the group itself has not been to Madison before, Trepp is an Iowa native who has visited the city previously. He said he is excited to come back to this “beautiful city” and “great college town.” He said Straight No Chaser’s show will appeal to all, especially students.
“I think the people that come to the show kind of feel that they are part of the show and they can be friends with us. We do a meet and greet after every show and make sure that if anyone wants to meet us we always … take the time to do that and show our fans that we appreciate them coming to the show,” Trepp said.
Ticket prices range from $26.50 to $42.50 and can be bought online at www.overturecenter.com, by phone at (608) 258-4141 or in-person at the Overture Center located on State Street. The show begins tonight at 7:30 p.m. For more information about Straight No Chaser, visit the group’s website, www.sncmusic.com.
