Nota (group)
Encyclopedia
Nota is an a cappella
group of six male vocalists from San Juan
, Puerto Rico
. The group met in 1994 and started singing together occasionally. The group won the first season of the musical competition The Sing-Off
.
during the summer of 2009. He called five other people he had sung with on and off with for 15 years, seeking the five best singers for the competition. There was initially some doubt that Rodriguez and Rios would be able to participate Both had family members sick with the H1N1 virus, and David Pinto was unsure if he could participate in the competition, due to financial issues. Daddy Yankee
, whom Pinto was working with, paid the airline bill in order for Pinto to participate in the competition. All five entered the competition.
, a singing competition broadcast on NBC
where they competed against seven other vocal groups. Largely considered the underdog of the competition, Nota's popularity soared after performing "Down
" by Jay Sean, on the second episode of the competition. In the final live broadcast on 21 December 2009, Nota won the contest against The Beelzebubs
and Voices of Lee. After Nota won the competition, Jay Sean joined the group onstage to perform "Down".
Greatly influenced by Boyz II Men
and similar vocal bands, Nota has developed their unique Latin style bringing in fusion of different styles in a blend of Salsa
, Hip hop
, Reggaeton
, R&B
and Merengue
, without any accompaniment of music instruments, vocally reproducing all the instruments of the Latin orchestra.
. In 2010, Nota met with Sony Executives to plan a studio album. They reported on Facebook
that they were recording in San Jose.
in the opening ceremony of the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games
held in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
. They also opened for Shakira
on a few American dates of her The Sun Comes Out World Tour
.
The group's debut album, Nota, was released on November 1, 2010. On December 8, 2010, the group returned to The Sing-Off and performed a cover of The Black Eyed Peas
' "I Gotta Feeling
," which is also featured on their debut album.
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
group of six male vocalists from San Juan
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
. The group met in 1994 and started singing together occasionally. The group won the first season of the musical competition The Sing-Off
The Sing-Off
The Sing-Off is an American television singing competition featuring a cappella groups. It premiered on NBC on December 14, 2009, and is produced by Sony Pictures Television....
.
Biography
Johnny Figueroa, Nota's bass singer, first heard of The Sing-OffThe Sing-Off
The Sing-Off is an American television singing competition featuring a cappella groups. It premiered on NBC on December 14, 2009, and is produced by Sony Pictures Television....
during the summer of 2009. He called five other people he had sung with on and off with for 15 years, seeking the five best singers for the competition. There was initially some doubt that Rodriguez and Rios would be able to participate Both had family members sick with the H1N1 virus, and David Pinto was unsure if he could participate in the competition, due to financial issues. Daddy Yankee
Daddy Yankee
Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez , known artistically as Daddy Yankee, is a Latin Grammy Award winning Puerto Rican Reggaeton recording artist. Ayala was born in Río Piedras, the largest district of San Juan, where he became interested in music at a young age. In his youth he was interested in baseball,...
, whom Pinto was working with, paid the airline bill in order for Pinto to participate in the competition. All five entered the competition.
The Sing-Off
Nota participated in the first season The Sing-OffThe Sing-Off
The Sing-Off is an American television singing competition featuring a cappella groups. It premiered on NBC on December 14, 2009, and is produced by Sony Pictures Television....
, a singing competition broadcast on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
where they competed against seven other vocal groups. Largely considered the underdog of the competition, Nota's popularity soared after performing "Down
Down (Jay Sean song)
"Down" is an R&B-electropop song by British artist Jay Sean. The song was released in North America as his debut single from his first album there, All or Nothing. In other markets, including the UK, the song serves as Jay Sean's lead single from his third studio album. The single features American...
" by Jay Sean, on the second episode of the competition. In the final live broadcast on 21 December 2009, Nota won the contest against The Beelzebubs
Beelzebubs
The Beelzebubs, frequently referred to as "The Bubs", are an all-male a cappella group from Tufts University that performs a mix of pop, rock, R&B, and other types of music while spreading their motto of "Fun through Song." They have toured in Europe, Asia, and North America, and they competed in...
and Voices of Lee. After Nota won the competition, Jay Sean joined the group onstage to perform "Down".
Greatly influenced by Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men is an American R&B vocal group best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are the most successful R&B group of all time, having sold more than albums worldwide. In the 1990s, Boyz II Men found fame on Motown Records as a quartet, but original member Michael McCary...
and similar vocal bands, Nota has developed their unique Latin style bringing in fusion of different styles in a blend of Salsa
Salsa music
Salsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
, Hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
, Reggaeton
Reggaeton
Reggaeton is a form of Puerto Rican and Latin American urban and Caribbean music. After its mainstream exposure in 2004, it spread to North American, European and Asian audiences. Reggaeton originated in Puerto Rico but is also has roots from Reggae en Español from Panama and Puerto Rico and...
, R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
and Merengue
Merengue music
Merengue is a type of music and dance from the Dominican Republic. It is popular in the Dominican Republic and all over Latin America. Its name is Spanish, taken from the name of the meringue, a dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar...
, without any accompaniment of music instruments, vocally reproducing all the instruments of the Latin orchestra.
Performances and results
| Episode | Theme | Song choice | Original artist | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Group's choice | "I'm Yours I'm Yours (Jason Mraz song) "I'm Yours" is the first single released by Jason Mraz from his third studio album We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. The song was originally released on a limited edition EP called Extra Credit as a demo in 2005 to promote his second studio album Mr. A–Z. It was performed in his 2004 and 2005... " |
Jason Mraz Jason Mraz Jason Thomas Mraz , also known as Mr. AZ and Mr. Raz, is an American singer-songwriter. Mraz released his debut album, Waiting for My Rocket to Come, which contained the hit single "The Remedy ", in 2002, but it was not until the release of his second album, "Mr. A-Z", in 2005, that Mraz achieved... |
Advanced |
| 2 | Big Hits | "Down Down (Jay Sean song) "Down" is an R&B-electropop song by British artist Jay Sean. The song was released in North America as his debut single from his first album there, All or Nothing. In other markets, including the UK, the song serves as Jay Sean's lead single from his third studio album. The single features American... " |
Jay Sean | Advanced |
| Guilty Pleasures | "Stayin' Alive Stayin' Alive "Stayin' Alive" is a song by the pop group Bee Gees from the Saturday Night Fever motion picture soundtrack. The song was written by the Bee Gees and produced by the Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson. It was released on 13 December 1977, as the second single from the Saturday Night Fever... " |
The Bee Gees | Advanced | |
| 3 | Superstar Medley | Various | Jackson 5 | Advanced |
| Judge's choice | "Sledgehammer Sledgehammer (song) "Sledgehammer" is a song by British musician Peter Gabriel from his 1986 album So. It hit number one in Canada on 21 July 1986 where it spent four weeks; number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States on 26 July 1986; and number four in the UK singles chart, thanks in part to a... " |
Peter Gabriel Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career... |
Advanced | |
| 4 | Finale | "Lean on Me Lean on Me (song) "Lean on Me" is a song written and released by Bill Withers in 1972.It was his first and only number one on both the soul singles and the Billboard Hot 100. It is ranked number 205 on the Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Numerous cover versions have been recorded, and it is one of... " |
Bill Withers Bill Withers William Harrison "Bill" Withers, Jr. is an American singer-songwriter and musician who performed and recorded from 1970 until 1985. Some of his best-known songs are "Lean on Me", "Ain't No Sunshine", "Use Me", "Just the Two of Us", "Lovely Day", and "Grandma's Hands"... |
Advanced |
| "The Tracks of My Tears The Tracks of My Tears "The Tracks of My Tears" is a much recorded love ballad introduced in 1965 by The Miracles on Motown's' Tamla label. This song is considered to be among the finest recordings of The Miracles, and it sold over one million records within two years, making it The Miracles' fourth million-selling... " |
The Miracles The Miracles The Miracles are an American rhythm and blues group from Detroit, Michigan, notable as the first successful group act for Berry Gordy's Motown Record Corporation . Their single "Shop Around" was Motown's first million-selling hit record, and the group went on to become one of Motown's signature... |
Winner | ||
Post Sing Off
As winners of the competition, they received US$100,000 and a recording contract with Sony Music EntertainmentSony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
. In 2010, Nota met with Sony Executives to plan a studio album. They reported on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
that they were recording in San Jose.
Nota (2010-present)
They performed at the Puerto Rico national anthemLa Borinqueña
La Borinqueña is the official anthem of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. After Puerto Rico became the "The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico" in 1952, the first elected governor, Luis Muñoz Marín, signed law #2 of July 24, 1952 that stated that the musical composition known as "La Borinqueña" was to...
in the opening ceremony of the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games
2010 Central American and Caribbean Games
The 21st Central American and Caribbean Games took place in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, from July 18, 2010 to August 1, 2010.-Bid:...
held in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
Mayagüez is the eighth-largest municipality of Puerto Rico. Originally founded as "Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria" it is also known as "La Sultana del Oeste" , "Ciudad de las Aguas Puras" , or "Ciudad del Mangó"...
. They also opened for Shakira
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
on a few American dates of her The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour
The Sun Comes Out World Tour is the fifth concert tour by Colombian singer-songwriter, Shakira. The tour is in support of her sixth and seventh studio albums, She Wolf and Sale El Sol. The tour will reach the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa...
.
The group's debut album, Nota, was released on November 1, 2010. On December 8, 2010, the group returned to The Sing-Off and performed a cover of The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas are an American pop group , formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1995. The group includes rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, and Taboo, and singer Fergie. Since the release of their third album Elephunk in 2003, the group has sold an estimated 56 million records worldwide...
' "I Gotta Feeling
I Gotta Feeling
"I Gotta Feeling" is the second single from The Black Eyed Peas' fifth studio album The E.N.D., produced by the French DJ David Guetta. The song was released on May 21, 2009 and debuted at number two on the Canadian and Billboard Hot 100 on the week of June 27, 2009, behind the group's "Boom Boom...
," which is also featured on their debut album.
Albums
| Year | Album | Peak | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US Heat Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical... |
US iTunes ITunes iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad.... |
|||||
| 2010 | Nota
|
— | 8 | 53 | |||
| Nota's A Capella Christmas
Extended play An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact... , digital download |
— | 21 | 57 | ||||
| "—" denotes the album didn't chart. | |||||||
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Latin Hot Latin Songs Hot Latin Songs is a record chart published by Billboard magazine. It is often recognized as the most important music chart for Spanish language Latin music in the American music market. It was established by the magazine on September 6, 1986 with La Guirnalda by Rocío Dúrcal being the first song... |
|||||||||
| 2010 | "Down Down (Jay Sean song) "Down" is an R&B-electropop song by British artist Jay Sean. The song was released in North America as his debut single from his first album there, All or Nothing. In other markets, including the UK, the song serves as Jay Sean's lead single from his third studio album. The single features American... " |
14 | Nota | ||||||
| "I Gotta Feeling I Gotta Feeling "I Gotta Feeling" is the second single from The Black Eyed Peas' fifth studio album The E.N.D., produced by the French DJ David Guetta. The song was released on May 21, 2009 and debuted at number two on the Canadian and Billboard Hot 100 on the week of June 27, 2009, behind the group's "Boom Boom... " |
16 | ||||||||
| "All I Want for Christmas Is You" | 31 | Nota's A Cappella Christmas | |||||||
| 2011 | "My Girl" | 40 | Nota | ||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Music videos
| Year | Song | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "All I Want for Christmas Is You" | Nota's A Capella Christmas |
| 2011 | "My Girl" | Nota |