Oregon State University Outspoken
Outspoken is a top notch a cappella group out of Oregon State University with an interesting history. Jason Taylor, a co-founder of the group, took time to answer questions from A Cappella Blog Content Manager Mike Chin.
A Cappella Blog (ACB): Last spring, Outspoken celebrated its fifth anniversary with a special show. How has the group developed over five years, and what did this milestone mean for the group? How did the show go?
Jason Taylor (JT): It's a very long story, but here goes. Outspoken was the direct result of myself and my long time childhood friend David Emmert. We were part of the Oregon All-State honor choir back in High School which was held at the University of Oregon. While there On The Rocks (OTR) did a two song exhibition performance for the honor choir. This was the first time either of us had heard contemporary a cappella before. Needless to say we loved the style. We both had our hearts set on going to Oregon State so singing with OTR was out of the question. So we decided to start our own group. We wanted to be different than OTR, but just as appealing. At least we hoped. Getting it started was a task in and of itself. A cappella in Oregon at the time was just still getting started (only a year or so before had UO's Divisi been formed) so we had no help besides what we came up with ourselves. We managed to recruit many freshmen guys and a couple sophomores into the original group since the upperclassmen didn't take us seriously. In fact some of the members who have been with us the last two years straight up refused to be in the original group. Now we can't get rid of them... go figure huh?
The first years were rough. People didn't take us seriously and we had to deal with OTR being one of the top groups in the country at the time. How would you like to be compared to the 2nd best group in the nation when you start your group? True fans were few and far between, we used to do gigs for free or just for food, but once we started to get our sound locked in we had more talent want to be in the group which then kick started our drive for success. The most important thing we ever did was compete in the ICCA's (we love you Amanda Grish!) where we found out first hand.... "Wow, we totally suck." From that point on we set our standards higher, changed our look to the black, and started incorporating many more different styles of songs to our rep.
Our five year show celebrated our triumph of the last five years in which we have come up from a rag tag group of underclassmen who were perceived as "On The Rocks" wannabes to a group that projects its own style and interpretation of a cappella. Oregon a cappella I personally believe has some of the best groups in the nation even though there aren't many groups here. Even so, the standard is set very high for groups here and Outspoken hopes to continue to exude its style a presence unto the a cappella community for the benefit of all a cappella. The show itself was fun and exciting, and we look forward to hosting many more in the years to come!
ACB: What can listeners expect from Outspoken's most recent CD, O2: Sing Responsibly!?
JT: Listener's can expect a professionally produced product which has
a nice blend of production and true a cappella. Many of us in Outspoken feel that many a cappella CDs move too far away from the a cappella sound for us to enjoy. We tried to keep the a cappella feel while still giving you the power and attitude of a produced CD. All in all I think it will be a favorite a cappella CD in any collection.
ACB: Outspoken finished second in its ICCA quarterfinal in 2007, advancing to the semifinals. Tell us a little bit about this experience. What were some highlights and lowlights of competing? Was the group happy with how it performed?
JT: That's a very loaded question. It's always interesting to be judged by three people who may each be looking for different things in the winning group. We knew it wouldn't be like in 2006 when we had a dominating appearance, but we didn't think it was as cut throat as the scores represented. I do agree that the top three were the top three, but it really could have gone in any order. So we knew we did great and the fans who came up to us (even UO fans) told us that we did awesome. Regardless of placement, that's all we want to do. Just go out there and give the best show we can!
We were pleased with the outcome, but just to get it off our chest Outspoken doesn't like the subjective scoring portion of the ICCA. No one deserves points just because a judge "liked" them the best, not even us. We say let their real score represent their rank. If you "have" to give bonus points give them ranking points based on who got the highest scores from each judge. This way it will force the judges to actually judge more and be consistent. Now don't get me wrong, we support the ICCA full heartedly and no competition is perfect, but as with anything something could always be improved upon. The ICCA has made great efforts to make the competition the best it can be, so we think every group should at least compete at some point because it's a great experience and you make great group connections.
ACB: Outspoken performs weekly in "Friday at Four" shows. Can you describe these performances? Why was the group performing weekly and what were some benefits or challenges to keeping this schedule?
JT: Every Friday once the new group is formed we sing outside our campus bookstore at 4pm. This is to get those students on campus to become aware of us. We let our women's group Divine open for us and we sing right after. They have been a hit with the campus ever since we started doing them. We have had fans say that its like the best ending to a hard week of class, and some even went as far as to say that it helped them get through the week without going insane. The benefit of singing our FaF performances is very apparent. When you have over 100 different people come each week to hear you sing for 15-25 minutes you know you have a positive effect. The challenges come from school conflicts such tours with the OSU music department and such, but those are few and far between. A little tip for other groups considering this--KEEP IT CONSISTENT--you need to make sure its all or nothing. People get confused to easily and assume no one checks your website. Stick to a consistent routine and do not alter it for the year.
ACB: The music department at Oregon State has allowed members of Outspoken to earn class credit for participation in the group. Has this had any effect on group dynamics or the nature of the group?
JT: This is a blessing that the OSU music department has bestowed on us. I hear stories from other campuses around the country of the music departments punishing their students for singing a cappella or kicking them out of voice studios. Here at OSU our faculty has come to accept and utilize what Outspoken has to offer. Often time the music department will ask us to perform at events for compensation (such as tour vans) later. This way, we help out the University and also get our name out there more as well. The Music department doesn't take any role on controlling what we do, but they do give us plenty of opportunities.
ACB: What is your favorite song to perform with Outspoken?
JT: The best song we ever performed was Macho Man. I have yet to see another a cappella group strip on stage and do Village People choreography. I have seen videos of us performing this song, and it's a hoot. I think we'll bring it back this year.
ACB: Is there anything else you would like to share with the readers of The A Cappella Blog?
JT: We know we're not that well known nor do we think we are the best in the nation, but if you want a group that consistent and will definitely be entertaining look this way to our little part of Oregon. Also, if you want more information about Outspoken check us out at OSUoutspoken.com, myspace.com/OSUoutspoken and we even have an Outspoken Facebook group. There are many ways to contact us--so send us a line!