2019 All American Awaaz

Swaram is Texas A&M University’s premier South Asian Fusion A Cappella team. Since its inception in 2007, the team has been renowned not only for competing at national collegiate a cappella competitions but also for numerous national accolades. Swaram fuses both Indian & Western musical styles through pure vocal performances to create innovative and vibrant music. Recognized for its avant-garde twist on South Asian fusion, Swaram enjoys bringing powerful stories to its music through representation of socially and politically prevalent concepts through its themes. Swaram has had the honor of placing at the All-American Awaaz National Championship for three years in a row and has released multiple albums and singles on Spotify and iTunes. Recently, Swaram’s latest single “Crazy in Love” was nominated for a Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award (CARA) for Best Mixed Collegiate Arrangement. Music is a beautiful language, and we hope our stories and music speak to you in a profound way!

Learn more about Swaram here: https://www.facebook.com/SwaramAcappella.

Dhamakapella is an award-winning coed South Asian fusion a cappella group based in Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio.
Dhamakapella was formed in 2005 by student Mayank Prasad at Case Western Reserve University. With help from students, Raksha Soora and Manoj Nair, Mayank organized and established the first university-recognized coed a cappella group, which would feature genres from both Western and Eastern cultures. Within three years, Dhamakapella grew into an sixteen-member group, with singers of various and diverse styles. Due to the untraditional arrangements and unusual compositions, the group instantly stood out on University campus and downtown Cleveland. In 2011, Dhamakapella released its debut album Pehli Nazar: First Look, following the group’s growing popularity across the city and the University. The group derives its influences from Indian classical, contemporary Bollywood, pop, and electronic genres.

Learn more about Dhamakapella here: https://www.facebook.com/dhamakapella.

Hum A Cappella was founded in 2001 and is the South Asian a cappella group at the University of Texas at Austin. Hum blends cultures and puts a unique spin on both Hindi and English songs. From its six-member inception, Hum has evolved into a group of highly dynamic vocalists who arrange all of their songs by themselves. They have competed at a variety of local and national competitions including ICCA, Jhalak, Taal, Nasha, Texas Revue, Gathe Raho in Iowa, and Anahat in California. The team comes from a variety of musical backgrounds, and their collaboration and appreciation for a cappella music keeps them constantly moving forward.

Learn more about Hum A Cappella here: https://www.utxhum.com.

In Hindi, ‘Dhunki’ means ‘spellbound.’ The name also contains the Hindi word ‘Dhun,’ which means ‘tune’ or ‘melody.’ This Hindi name symbolizes this group’s focus on the areas of South Asian music and culture. The group’s goal is to spread their culture throughout the community by the means of a unique style of music in which Eastern and Western themes collide in intricately arranged mashups.

Learn more about Dhunki here: https://dhunkimusic.weebly.com.