Twice a week, the Ransom Notes turn the Calhoun Hall stairwell into an auditorium. Early evening sunlight pours through the window as their harmonies echo up and down the floors. A cappella means something different than competition to them.
“There’s no greater objective of competing or winning,” Tenley Laun, Ransom Notes’ president, said. “(Our participation) is genuinely out of a want to spend time with each other and spend time learning music.”
The Ransom Notes, a singing troupe, became the first a cappella group on campus in 1996. After they stopped competing at least a decade ago, the group began to attract talented vocalists looking to sing stress-free. Leanne Ji, music director and psychology senior, competed against Laun in high school and said the promise of a laid-back experience drew her to the Ransom Notes.
“I know how stressful competition season can be,” Ji said. “I didn’t want to do that in addition to school.”
Laun, a psychology senior, said the Ransom Notes mostly play gigs within the community and across campus. Acapalooza, slated for Nov. 7 and followed by an “A-ca” social, brings all eight of UT’s a cappella groups together for a night Ji called a “quiet competition.” Only a week away from the performance, Ransom Notes’ rehearsals remain lighthearted.
“It almost feels like we’re hanging out while we’re learning our music,” Laun said. “We get the chance to laugh and joke around while spending time doing stuff that we’re really passionate about.”
Still, Ji said the Ransom Notes sound better than ever. More than two years ago, a TikTok now sitting at 29 million views gave the group a national following. Miku Coulston, design freshman and first year Ransom Notes member, said she realized the group’s talent level when she heard them sing “Evergreen” by Yebba.
Ji said, “I remember the first time they sang (“Evergreen”), I was like, ‘woah,’” she said. “Everyone’s crazy good.”
Ji said she considers a long list of songs when preparing for a performance, but two songs in the Ransom Notes’ setlist never change. They added Young the Giant’s “Cough Syrup” after a member who auditioned with the song died in an on-campus stabbing in 2017, and every spring show ends with the first song the Ransom Notes ever arranged, The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Soul to Squeeze.”
Outside rehearsal, Laun said the Ransom Notes spend a lot of time goofing around and singing together. According to her, singers in the same vocal groups, such as alto, tenor and soprano, form the closest friendships.
“We’re all a giant group of a cappella nerds,” Laun said. “But even in our giant group we have smaller little groups.”
Laun said nine times out of 10, hanging out with the Ransom Notes means spontaneous singing. For the last four years, she has sung her audition song at karaoke night, the team’s first social event every year.
“Sophomore year I had everyone over and we watched Pitch Perfect,” Laun said. “We’re those a cappella people.”
When asked to compare herself to a Barden Bella, Laun chose Chloe, the fictional group’s optimistic co-leader.
“She was the diehard Barden Bella,” Laun said. “I’m the diehard Ransom Note.”
