Dear Friend,

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Thanks for reading this! Most people stop when they see so many words. But not you!

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Penn Six was the first student-led a cappella singing group at Penn, founded in 1980. When asked why he started the group, founder Jeff Harlan (who is still alive and chatty) said, "We went against the grain, we were like, whatever. Let's just sing. Let's just have fun. Let’s just throw melting ice cream sandwiches to our audience … well, maybe AT our audience.” 

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Since then, the group grew, thrived, shrunk, grew again, was great, was mediocre and was great again. Remember the movie, Pitch Perfect? We were the inspiration for that when Elizabeth Banks attended Penn in the 1990s…Really! Google it. Or click here. 

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Over the years the a cappella music scene has grown and flourished on campuses across the country and at Penn especially. We love that. We do. But we don’t love the pressure. The interviews. The call-backs. And the pressure, did we say pressure already? Being in a music group is supposed to be fun, where undergrads can step out of the cooker for a minute, sing, joke, and focus on the amazing thing that happens when a cappella harmony is done right. 

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So we decided to bring the inclusive, bring the harmonious, and bring the funny (back) to the a cappella scene at Penn. This may be the first “NO audition. NO interview.” college a cappella group in the country. In fact, let’s just start saying it is and then it will be true. F**k the System. Join the Song!

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Love, 
Penn Six – a cappella reinvented