This Christmas season, platinum-selling a capella group Pentatonix took over New York City’s Empire State Building for a music and light extravaganza. The five singers partnered with renowned lighting designer Marc Brickman to sync the group’s Grammy nominated take on Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy with a light show on the face of the iconic building. And, yes, it was as magical as it sounds.
Pentatonix debuted the music-to-light show with a live performance in the Empire State Building lobby on December 10. “Our song, Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy, which is Grammy nominated, is going to be lit up by all of these LED lights here and it’s so exciting,” said Pentatonix’s Scott Hoying in the video. Then the five singers began the emotive classic song while the Empire State Building’s lights changed color in sync with the music.
The song comes from the group’s 2014 smash-hit holiday album That’s Christmas to Me, which has sold over 1.6 million copies. It also features holiday favorites Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Silent Night, and an original song called That’s Christmas To Me.
Vocalist Kevin Olusola explained to Billboard that Pentatonix hoped to bring a new spin on the Christmas classics. “For us, just the fact that we do music all vocal, there’s already a uniqueness inherent in what we do. It’s not a crazy amount of pressure, we just try to do what we do.”
2015 was another successful year for the group, which released its fourth studio record featuring mostly original music. The self-titled, chart-topping release spells a bright future for the talented acapella group.
In the meantime, though, Pentatonix just wants to spread some holiday cheer. “Don’t let the holidays stress you out too much! Consciously let yourself enjoy everything around you,” said Hoying to InStyle. “The beautiful holiday decorations, your family, the music, the cold air. It’s a beautiful time of year, and that shouldn’t be forgotten.”
