The Withers lecture hall was packed Friday night for a Tunes 4 Tay a capella event, which raised about $1,200 for pediatric cancer research.
The N.C. State a capella group, the Ladies in Red, coordinated the event with the Tay-bandz organization to perform with other North Carolina-based collegiate a capella groups.
“It was fantastic to have so many groups come out that were so enthusiastic about the cause,” said Ashley Oskardmay, the Ladies in Red music director. “We really had a great turnout in terms of people in the audience.”
N.C. State’s a capella groups Ladies in Red, Grains of Time and Acappology performed along with Elon’s male group Rip_Chord and UNC-G’s all female group, the Sapphires. Each group performed three songs and several incorporated dance routines as well.
Trish Rubin, the philanthropic brand manager for Tay-bandz, said Tay-bandz was founded for Taylor Matthews who died of cancer at age 16. Rubin said the organization has started working with a capella groups because Taylor had an interest and love for music.
According to Rubin, the company is working with college a capella groups across the United States to raise money for pediatric cancer research. Rubin said the events give a capella groups a chance to showcase their talent and support an important cause.
“We came up with a campaign to help young people understand they can contribute to the world in a meaningful way through their passion,” Rubin said. “We give the a capella groups the experience of raising their voices and raising awareness for our cause.”
Rubin said the campaign started in the spring of 2013, and so far, Tay-bandz has worked with 12 colleges. The campaign requires that a capella groups be energetic and that they match the brand’s persona. Rubin said she watched the Ladies in Red perform on YouTube and thought the group would be a perfect fit.
Rubin said she picked Raleigh to hold a fundraiser because of the city’s proximity to a variety of talented a capella groups that could participate. Rubin said she was very pleased with the groups that performed and thought all of them were extremely talented.
Laura Poag, business manager for the Ladies in Red and coordinator of the event, said the group decided to have the event when Trish Rubin reached out to ask if the a capella group would be interested in working with them. Poag then contacted other college a capella groups, including Rip_Chord and the Sapphires.
Several songs performed by the Ladies in Red included “Bleeding Out” by Imagine Dragons, “I Knew You Were Trouble” by Taylor Swift, and “I Want You Back” by Jackson Five.
N.C. State’s all male group, Grains of Time, performed “Cruise” by Florida Georgia Line and a mashup of “Too Close to Love You” and “As Long as You Love Me” along with a dance routine.
The Tay-bandz organization accepts donations for its cause at its website kidscuringcancer.org.
