A capella groups from the United States, including Puerto Rico, are chosen by audition and advanced in the competition based on judges' eliminations until the finale, with the winners being determined by viewer votes.
The Sing-Off was renewed for a third season and started airing much earlier on September 19, 2011, although the first two series had been broadcast in December.[5] Unlike previous seasons, the early start in September allowed for the production of more episodes and the number of participant groups increased.
The Puerto Rican group Nota won the title for the inaugural season in 2009. Committed from Huntsville, Alabama took the 2010 title (season 2) and Pantatonix from Arlington, Texas won the 2011 title (season 3).
On December 5, 2011 groups from all three seasons will come together to sing Christmas songs called the Sing-off Christmas.
The show featured eight a cappella groups performing popular songs live. The winner's prize was $100,000 and an Epic Records/Sony Music recording contract.[7]
The first episode saw all eight groups perform together, and then they began to perform as individual groups singing their signature songs. The first four performed with one, Face, being eliminated. Then the next group of four performed with Solo being sent off.
The second episode saw all six groups perform two songs: in the first half of the show, each group performed one big hit from recent years; and in the second half, they each sang one "guilty pleasure" song. In the end, Noteworthy was eliminated.
The third episode had the five remaining groups perform a medley from a classic artist, after which the judges sent Maxx Factor home. In the second part of the show, the four remaining groups performed songs that the judges picked specifically to showcase each group's strengths, after which The SoCals were sent off.
At the end of the third show, viewers were asked to call or text to vote for one of the remaining groups, Voices of Lee, The Beelzebubs, and Nota. The group with the most votes was revealed in the finale, and in the end Voices of Lee was revealed to come in third place halfway through the finale, with Nota being declared winners the final five minutes.
In the second season of the show, premiering on December 6, 2010, the number of groups was increased from 8 to 10, with all acts coming from the United States. Nick Lachey returned as host for the second season, as well as the three judges Ben Folds, Shawn Stockman and Nicole Scherzinger.
The program aired for 5 nights on December 6, 8, 13 and 15, followed by a finale on December 20, 2010 (between 8-10 p.m. ET each night). The season premiere averaged 8.5 million viewers[citation needed].
In the first episode, the groups sang their signature songs, in which Pitch Slapped and Men of Note were the first two groups eliminated.
In the second episode, the remaining 8 groups were to sing a modern song that was released in the past 5 years. In the end, Eleventh Hour and The Whiffenpoofs were eliminated, leaving 6 groups in the competition.
The assignment for the third episode was to cover a rock song and a "guilty pleasure" piece, in which Groove for Thought was eliminated.
The fourth episode's challenge was to sing a medley of songs by a noteworthy artist. On the Rocks was eliminated after this phase. In the next part of the episode, the remaining groups performed songs chosen specifically for them by the judges. One more group was supposed to be eliminated, but the judges chose to put all four groups through to the public voting rounds, which means that this is the only season to put all four groups that can make it to the finals.
On the night of the finale the competitors took turns performing selections with guest artists Sara Bareilles, Sheryl Crow and Neil Diamond, as well as each of the judges.
First to be eliminated by viewer votes was Jerry Lawson and The Talk of the Town; next was The Back Beats. Last two standing were Street Corner Symphony and Committed, with the latter winning the trophy and prizes.
The Sing-Off was renewed for a third season and premiered on September 19, 2011 (unlike the previous 2 seasons when it was held in December).[5] This will be the first Sing-Off Season to include 16 groups of a cappella singers. On May 16, 2011, it was announced that judge Nicole Scherzinger would not return as a judge for this season due to her duties as one of the judges of The X Factor,[10] and that Sara Bareilles would replace Scherzinger on the judging panel.[11]
† The collected groups performed the "clean" version of Fuckin' Perfect at the beginning of episode 1. For the first four episodes, the competition was divided into two brackets, here labeled A and B, with each round divided over two episodes.