Collegiate a cappella may be niche, but it’s no joke. Though many may think of it as just “doo doo doo doo dada,” as Veda Krishna, current business manager of USC’s premiere SoCal VoCals said, “there’s serious artistry going on here.”

Founded 30 years ago, the SoCal VoCals have won five International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella titles. Dubbed the real-life “Pitch Perfect” (2012) by The New Yorker, the VoCals certainly draw comparison to the fictional Barden Bellas; but, in 2023, they were given their own chance to make their voices heard on screen, thanks to alums Angelique Molina and Abraham Troen.

Molina and Troen met as graduate students at the School of Cinematic Arts and began collaborating in their classes before graduating in 2016 and 2017. Their professional relationship extended beyond their years at USC, as they continued working together and decided to come back to campus to make a film about the SoCal VoCals titled “Just Sing.”

During their time at USC, neither Molina nor Troen was involved in the a cappella scene, but Molina said she was aware of their presence on campus ever since attending her first college party at the SoCal VoCal house. After they first met the group, Molina and Troen said they were inspired not only by the beautiful music the group was able to create together, but the genuine friendship the VoCals shared.

“A cappella is not a soloist sport,” Molina said. “It’s definitely a team sport, and even though you have soloists, it doesn’t work unless you’re all in sync with each other.”

“Just Sing” was filmed in 2023, the last year that the VoCals competed in the ICCAs, and follows their journey all the way from rehearsals to the finals. But the film doesn’t only focus on the competition aspect of the journey; it showcases the VoCals as people, getting to know their individual stories.

Competing in the ICCAs with the winningest group in the world — not to mention with a documentary crew following along — was nerve-wracking, said Mateo Gonzales, a USC alum who graduated in 2024, but he quickly realized what a special thing it was to be a part of.

“We all thought [the film] was going to be more focused on the competition,” Gonzales said. “But it ended up being a really amazing time capsule of everybody’s life at that time.”

Gonzales said the VoCals defined his college experience. It was his dream to be in the group; he said it was one of the reasons he wanted to go to USC in the first place. He said that the VoCals consider singing like a second major, and that they formed a real “familial bond.”
“I think all of us would say that we would really do anything for anybody in that group; it just becomes a real family,” Gonzales said. “I still talk to every single person in that group from that year. I think a lot of us are still singing together.”

But titles are not won only by the power of friendship. It takes real grit and determination — and hours of rehearsal — something the VoCals are known for, according to Krishna, a senior majoring in theatre.

“It’s a little bit more than just a cappella to us,” Krishna said. “We are very, very serious about the musicality aspect of it, and we’re super committed to our sound and our blend, and how we refine everything to the max capability we possibly can.”

Molina said the VoCals’ obsession with perfection is what made them so interesting to follow. Troen described the film’s focus on the rigor of collegiate a cappella as being similar to competitions like those portrayed in “Spellbound” (2002) and “Cheer” (2020), where being “number one” is the “most important thing in the world” to its participants.

“It can definitely be a lot at times. … [It] holds a mirror to you in every way, being like, ‘Are you capable? Are you willing to put in this much work?’” Krishna said. “I think that’s why we love it so much, because it makes us grow in so many ways.”

Given the intense effort and passion the VoCals put into their performances, it’s no wonder that, after the competition was over, Gonzales said he couldn’t help but get emotional the last time he filmed with the crew in his room.

“We became such great friends, and I just started sobbing because I was so moved by the fact that they had really taken our story and made something beautiful with it,” Gonzales said.

Since graduating in 2024, Gonzales and fellow former VoCals Maddi Lasker, Raymond Ortiz and Yohanna Bauerdorf formed a pop vocal group called Locked and have played gigs across the country. He has also been writing and releasing his own music and teaching choir and a cappella at a few schools in the Los Angeles area.

“Just Sing” premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival, and has been on a limited theatrical run since May. Gonzales said the first time the group saw the film at a private screening, he felt “complete awe.”

“I think we didn’t realize how beautiful our story was when we were living through it,” Gonzales said. “But getting to see it played back to us, it really was an incredible time, and such a beautiful experience that we had together.”