Straight No Chaser

The a cappella group Straight No Chaser formed in 1996, when the ensemble's original members — singers Dan Ponce, Randy Stine, Charlie Mechling, Steve Morgan, Jerome Collins, Dave Roberts, Walter Chase, Mike Itkoff, and Patrick Hachey — were students at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. Although this lineup only performed together for three years before all 10 students graduated, a clip of their 1998 holiday performance found its way onto YouTube, where it became a viral sensation during the late 2000s. At the request of Atlantic Records, the group reunited and released a Christmas record, Holiday Spirits, in 2008. The album went gold in America, as did 2009's Christmas Cheers. By 2010's With a Twist, Straight No Chaser had begun making room in its repertoire for cappella covers of pop/rock songs, as well. The group spent the following decade switching between holiday songs and contemporary material, with highlights including the Top 40 hit Under the Influence (2013) and the seasonal album Social Christmasing (2020).

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