Northwestern group Purple Haze will compete in an international a cappella competition at New York City’s Lincoln Center on April 19. They beat out 28 other Midwestern competitors for a spot in the finals.
“This is the first time any Northwestern a cappella group has made it this far in the competition and it is a huge honor to be among the top groups in the world,” said Communication senior Morgan Karr, who is the group’s former president and is planning the trip.
Five U.S. regions and Western Europe will send a representative to the final. Purple Haze entered the competition once ten years earlier, but didn’t make it past the quarterfinals, he said.
This year, in the semifinals at Cahn Auditorium on March 15, Purple Haze beat out the University of Illinois’ Xtension Chords to advance to the finals. Each time the singers won, they celebrated like game-show winners, Karr said, jumping up and down and singing a song.
Karr said ensuring the group could make it to New York proved tricky, because 11 of its 17 members are also involved in other theatrical endeavors. He also had to secure a School of Communication grant to pay for travel expenses.
Karr found the success satisfying in part because it was based on live performances. Other a cappella awards are based on studio recordings.
“To say that we made it this far not based on the studio tricks” makes it more rewarding, Karr said. The group rehearses in two-hour sessions, three times a week.
Looking ahead to the final, Karr said that “being in the top six is what is incredible about this moment.” Though Purple Haze will work hard for the finals, he said, “at the end of the day, we have already won.”