In November of 2011, a vocal quintet consisting of baritone Scott Hoying, tenor Mitch Grassi, mezzo-soprano Kirstin Maldonado, bassist Avi Kaplan, and beatboxer Kevin Olusola, won the third installment of the former NBC acapella competition show, "The Sing-Off." Singing hit singles such as "Video Killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles and "Born to be Wild" by Steppenwolf, the group based out of Arlington, Texas rose to fame and made their way into our hearts with their amazing melodies and harmonies, earth-shattering bass notes, and crisp percussive beatboxing. Since then, they have release seven studio albums, won numerous awards (three Grammy's, one Streamy, two YouTube Music Awards and one Shorty Award to be exact!), gone on three international tours and have even released a documentary entitled "On My Way Home." Not to mention, all of these accomplishments happened before any of them have turned 30. How amazing is that?

1) Scott's Riffs and Runs

Imagine this, you are at a United States sporting event. The announcer just asked you to rise and remove your hats for the National Anthem. It sounds like any other version of the national anthem...until the vocalist decides to put embellishments on EVERY. SINGLE. SYLLABLE. This is much like what Scott Hoying does in a classic Pentatonix arrangement, except it's actually a lot more appealing. He can take a syllable and add a multitude of embellishments and still leave you with goosebumps by the end of the song. He could add riffs to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and it would still sound amazing.

2) Kirstie and Mitch's Whistle Tones

Do you remember the part in the first Shrek movie whenever Princess Fiona wakes up in the morning and goes to find breakfast for Shrek and Donkey and comes across that mama bird and her eggs? And then they preceded to have a "Battle of the Highest Notes," ultimately leading to Princess Fiona winning and the bird exploding? As a kid, I never thought that anybody besides a cartoon character could reach those notes. That was before I listened to a video of Kirstie and Mitch having a similar "Battle of the Highest Notes" competition. This time, however, without the exploding.

Previously mentioned video can be seen here:

3) Mitch's Soprano...I mean Alto...wait no, Bass...actually, "Tenor" Range.

During interviews when asked what voice group he identifies with, Mitch Grassi typically says tenor. On the other hand, when you actually listen to a PTX arrangement, you are left wondering if this is actually true. In most cases, without knowing who the members of the group are, you might mistake the group for having 2 females and 3 males. Although Kirstie is labeled as the mezzo-soprano, there are some instances where Mitch's notes go much higher than hers. Mitch's technical vocal range is anywhere from an F#2 to an F6. In most arrangements, his notes seem to be drifting in the stratosphere.

One exception to this is their cover of Aha's "Take on Me", where Mitch uses the full extension of his vocal range during the chorus.

4) Avi's Bass Notes

Avi Kaplan (who is now a former member of the group) has a low vocal range that could shake the entire room. To get the full Avi Kaplan experience during an arrangement, it's best to listen with headphones due to the low frequencies. If you truly want to get the Avi Kaplan experience, I highly recommend listening to "Standing By" or "Light in the Hallway". Both are solos sung by Kaplan with accompaniment.

What's the worst part of the low frequencies of his voice, you might ask? Live performances cannot live up to the expectations you get from listening to a studio recording. I have yet to see a televised or streamed performance where you can actually hear each of the members equally, let alone just Avi. Until they can find the perfect balance on the microphone volume, Avi nor the new bassist Matt Sallee will be heard as much as they should.

5) Kevin's Multitasking

This video is all you need to know about Kevin:

6) Their Heart-Wrenching Emotion

As a future music educator, it fills my heart with so much joy whenever I see someone pour their heart and their soul into their music. Whether it be an instrumental work or a vocal piece, nothing is more satisfying that watching someone leave all of their emotion out on the stage. Pentatonix is no different.

Just watch Kirstie shaking at the end of their Sing-Off performance of Kanye West's "Love Lockdown". Nothing but pure emotion.

7) Their God-like Composing Skills

During their "Sing-Off" days, judges Shawn Stockman, Ben Folds, and Sara Bareilles made numerous comments about their very "futuristic" arrangements. From imitating a drum set and bass guitar to imitating a CD skip, there is no shortage of sounds that Pentatonix can add to their arrangements.

My personal favorite aspect of their composing is that you would never be able to guess who the "lead singer" of the group would be. Throughout their many albums, each member has had the opportunity to showcase their skills. Most of their songs include equal parts for all of the members, while such songs as "Water", "The Baddest Girl", "See Through", and "Light in the Hallway" show off individual people while the other four are accompaniment.

8) Their Good (and not so good) Hair and Fashion Choices.

Mitch Grassi is the queen of changing his looks. He has gone from wearing mostly graphic tees and leather jackets to wearing the latest ensemble from Calvin Klein. Not to mention he has changed his hair style about a thousand times.

HOW IS THIS THE SAME PERSON?

Kirstie can't seem to stay awake from the hair salon either.

Honestly, I have only one thing to say about their sense of fashion.

WHO LET THEM GO OUT LIKE THIS? Come on PTX, I know you can do better than that!

9) Their Love for not Only Their Fans, but for one Another.

As an avid listener to various different types of music, I have never once seen a group that love and care for their fans as much as Pentatonix. Referred to as "Pentaholics", the PTX fan club is just one big loving family which could never be possible if the quintet didn't set such a wonderful example for us. The members of Pentatonix are the most down to earth group of people that I know. Most celebrities get a big ego once they rise to fame and forget where they came from and who they used to be, but more importantly, why they do what they do.

While Pentatonix shot up in popularity just in the matter of six years, that has never stopped them from being the same group of people they were before they stepped on the "Sing-Off" stage. They would take a bullet for us, give us the shirt off their backs, and do whatever it would take to make sure we are taken care of. Isn't that enough to give listening to them a shot?

Not to mention they care very deeply for each other. Most groups tend to break up after being with each other non-stop for a while, but that can't be said for PTX. In fact, "the trio", consisting of Kirstie, Scott, and Mitch grew up together in Arlington, Texas and have been best friends ever since the first met each other in choir and theatre. Before auditioning for the "Sing-Off", the trio had never met Kevin or Avi but quickly took them in as if they had been best friends since they were born.

In 2017, Avi Kaplan decided that he was going to step away from the group. He decided that touring and constantly being away from his family was not something that he wanted and he refused to hold the rest of the group back because of that. In a tear-jerking video release by the group talking about his dismissal, you can just see the pain that was in each of the member's faces as Avi talked about the circumstances. They had grown so close together that it was extremely painful to watch them have to let one of their own go.

Now, pick up your nearest wireless device and get on your Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, or whatever streaming service you might use and download and listen to at least one Pentatonix song. I can 100% guarantee you that you will not regret it!