Ravinia 2019, Issue 6, Week 11

success—and the ve didn’t waste their opportunity, their talent, or their youth. In a musical scene where artists can communicate directly with fans, they didn’t need a contract with a major label: ey could curate their own YouTube channel. (It now has a whop- ping million subscribers; their videos have collectively tallied billion views.) Beyond writing, arranging, and record- ing music, they raised their pro le in other ways, such as appearing in the movie Pitch Perfect and on multiple TV shows—not just in the States, but in China and Germany too. e group casts a wide net when it comes the musical genres. Christmas music is one specialty, although summer audiences shouldn’t expect to hear any seasonal music. “Christmas is a very big part of what we do,” Olusola says. “But most of the year, we’re a pop-vocal band; we just focus on giving people a pop- rock show.” To that end, they arrange a cappella covers of a wide range of music, every- thing from classic rock (“Bohemian Rhapsody”) to pop (“Video Killed the Radio Star”) to country (“Jolene”). eir newest recordings, released this year, include an arrangement of Lady Gaga’s Oscar- and Grammy-winning “Shallow” (with cello accompaniment by Olusola) and, proving how well they have their pulse on the zeitgeist, their version of “Waving rough a Window” from the Broadway phenomenon Dear Evan Hansen . bring something to the table when it comes to selecting and arranging music. “We all sit down together in a circle, and we all have such varied tastes,” Olusola says. “It’s helpful because we bring our music knowl- edge to the ta- ble, and when we all love something, we know more people will like it because it’s going through ve di erent musical minds.” Given that Olusola surprised himself on his life journey to musical fame and fortune, what do his parents think about his chosen career? “Oh, man. Now they’re excited. It took them a while!” he says. “I remember, when we rst started, we were all living in this apartment complex that—it wasn’t glamorous, I can tell you right now. It was in rent per month, and in LA, that’s absolutely nothing, so you can totally imagine the kind of place we were living in. My dad came to see it, and a erward he sent me a long text telling me he cried most of the night. He said, ‘I worked my butt o , coming from Nigeria to the United States to be a doctor, so that my children can get into the best schools. is breaks my heart.’ So it was hard for me in the beginning. “But then, as we started to rise, my dad began to understand it,” Olusola continues. To illustrate their transforma- tion, he shares this funny anecdote from : “We were about to win our second Grammy, and we had just sung with Ste- vie Wonder and then we presented Ed Sheeran his Song of the Year Grammy. My dad congratulated me—and then he said, ‘So, when are you going back to medical school?’ “I was like, ‘You have got to be kid- ding me! Dad, it’s actually working now!’ He’s like, ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah.’ He meant it as a joke. He said, ‘I’m really proud of you and I’m really happy for you.’ It’s been really, really good to see my parents’ change of heart.” Native Chicagoan Web Behrens writes a weekly feature for the Chicago Tribune about family-friendly things to do. Over the past 25 years, he’s covered arts and culture for Time Out Chicago , Crain’s Chicago Business , The Reader , and Advocate magazine. AUGUST 12 – AUGUST 25, 2019 | RAVINIA MAGAZINE 23