Acapop! Kids is an acapella group made up of teens ages 14-18 from all over the US and Canada. For their audition, the group sang an emotional tribute song for Nolan Gibbons, a previous Acapop member who unexpectedly passed away. After a beautiful rendition of their late friend’s song, the group received a standing ovation from both the audience and the judges, sending them through to the quarter-finals.
After the first act of the night, it was time for Acapop to take the stage. The group was ready with another original, written by the members performing, called “Glow.” However, the song title was not exactly foreshadowing this performance.
The song started out slow and quiet, with one member singing solo while some of the others echoed background vocals. Aubree Archibeck (middle, dark purple) was next on the mic, and the song began to pick up. It was immediately clear that Aubree was the star of the night’s performance, belting a high note that brought the group into the chorus of the song. The entire group began singing together, some harmonizing and singing the lyrics, while others acted as the “instruments”. The song broke off into more solos, showing off the impressive skillset of the other members.
While their talent was clear, the accuracy of pitch and tempo was definitely not. And though the song attempted to start soft and break into a grand chorus, it failed to have structure, coming off a bit messy and staying pretty boring. Judge Howie Mandel seemed to agree, because once Aubree took back the performance and prepared for another high note, the buzzer was slammed, immediately throwing off the singer and resulting in a butchered belt. The group seemed to lose their footing after this, with more soloists’ voices breaking and falling flat. However, they managed to quickly regain their place and came together for a breathtaking group harmony that saved the performance.
“You know, the only thing that was glowing for me was that red X,” Howie told the group shortly after their performance ended. “You harmonize, you have nice voices, I felt like I was at a school assembly. And I did not do great in school, and I didn’t do great during that act. This doesn’t rise to the level of AGT.”
“I have to say that I personally liked your audition much more than tonight,” Sofia chimed in, “But then I have to remind myself that you guys are singing without instruments, it’s only your voices.”
To this, Howie replied, “How else do you sing?” which was definitely an uncalled-for jab at the performers, and unnecessarily rude to Sofia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXeow8PwJro
