By Kelly Blithe
Your State Theater Magazine
November 14, 2011
KB: The story of how Straight No Chaser rose to fame and was eventually signed to Atlantic Records sounds like a dream come true. Between the rising number of YouTube views to that call from Atlantic Chairman/CEO Craig Kallman, what was going through your head during that crazy time?
Randy Stine: Watching the view count increase from roughly 100,000 to nearly 7,000,000 was thrilling in itself. I received many inquiries about us releasing our music through online companies, but they all seemed a bit untrustworthy. When Craig Kallman called me, it also seemed too good to be true, until I flew to LA and had dinner with him in person. The highest hopes I really had at the time were to shoot a onetime reunion special for television or a DVD.
Read more:
https://www.yourstatetheatrenj.org/2011/11/14/qa-with-straight-no-chasers-randy-stine/
(Edit: The link is no longer active, so the full text appears below.)
Every year the State Theatre presents a wide variety of holiday shows
from a jazzy Christmas (Dave Koz & Friends) to a big band (The Jimmy
Dorsey Orchestra & The Pied Pipers) celebration to seasonal traditions
like The Nutcracker and Salute to Vienna. Kicking off that holiday
season cheer and making theirState Theatre debut is the a cappella
sensation Straight No Chaser (SNC).
Originally a group at Indiana University, SNC became a YouTube
sensation after founding singer Randy Stine posted some clips from a
past concert on YouTube. The videos went on to score millions of hits,
landing SNC with a recording contract.
Stine, who continues to perform and tour as an original member of the
group, took a few minutes out of his busy schedule to talk about SNC’s
rise to fame and what we can expect from SNC’s November 23rd concert
here at the State Theatre.
KB: The story of how Straight No Chaser rose to fame and was
eventually signed to Atlantic Records sounds like a dream come true.
Between the rising number of YouTube views to that call from Atlantic
Chairman/CEO Craig Kallman, what was going through your head during
that crazy time?
Randy Stine: Watching the view count increase from roughly 100,000 to
nearly 7,000,000 was thrilling in itself. I received many inquiries
about us releasing our music through online companies, but they all
seemed a bit untrustworthy. When Craig Kallman called me, it also
seemed too good to be true, until I flew to LA and had dinner with
him in person. The highest hopes I really had at the time were to
shoot a onetime reunion special for television or a DVD.
KB: SNC’s latest album,
With A Twist, is a great mix of songs ranging
from Red Hot Chili Peppers “Under the Bridge” to a wonderful fusion of
Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours” and Israel Kamakawiwoole’s version of
“Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” How did you decide what songs to put on
this album? Also, are there any songs that didn’t make the cut?
Randy Stine: With 10 guys in the group, we have a very wide variety of
musical tastes and backgrounds. Our song selections come from all 10
of us which helps us have diversity in our song choices. There are
sometimes songs that don’t make the cut, whether we were unhappy with
the way they turned out in the studio, or we didn’t have room for them
on this album. Some of those songs may surface again in the future.
KB: You have been doing this for a while, is there a particular song
or moment in your performances that you enjoy the most?
Randy Stine: There’re many different moments during the live show that
I enjoy; particularly moments when we surprise the audience with a
song choice or twist on a song they weren’t expecting.
KB: SNC has a large fan base, what would you say is the most memorable
fan moment for you so far?
Randy Stine: It’s difficult to narrow down just one single fan moment,
there are so many that stand out to me. In general, my favorite
memories are made in towns we play that we weren’t expecting to sell
out. It’s so humbling to play a city you’ve never been to before, and
walk out on stage to see that every seat is taken.
KB: What can we expect from this performance on November 23 at the
State Theatre?
Randy Stine: We’re really excited to play the State Theatre, and the
show will be a good mix of oldies, contemporary pop, as well as
holiday tunes.
KB: What can we expect from SNC in the future?
Randy Stine: Looking towards the future, we plan to continue touring
and releasing new music as long as there are fans who support what we
do.
