''Pitch Battle'' was a singing show hosted by
Mel Giedroyc
Melanie Clare Sophie Giedroyc (; , born 5 June 1968) is a British actress, comedian and television presenter. With Sue Perkins, she has co-hosted series including ''Light Lunch'' for Channel 4, ''The Great British Bake Off'' for the BBC and cha ...
on
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
. It began airing on 17 June 2017. The show sees rival musical groups facing-off against each other, inspired by the 2012 film ''
Pitch Perfect
''Pitch Perfect'' is a 2012 American musical comedy film directed by Jason Moore and written by Kay Cannon. It features an ensemble cast, including Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Skylar Astin, Anna Camp, Brittany Snow, Hana Mae Lee, Alexis Knap ...
''.
At the final on 22 July 2017, Leeds Contemporary Singers were crowned the winners.
Judges and presenters
The series was hosted by
Mel Giedroyc
Melanie Clare Sophie Giedroyc (; , born 5 June 1968) is a British actress, comedian and television presenter. With Sue Perkins, she has co-hosted series including ''Light Lunch'' for Channel 4, ''The Great British Bake Off'' for the BBC and cha ...
and is joined each week by judges
Gareth Malone
Gareth Edmund Malone (born 9 November 1975) is an English choirmaster and broadcaster, self-described as an "animateur, presenter and populariser of choral singing". He is best known for his television appearances in programmes such as '' The ...
and
Kelis
Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perform ...
and series music director
Deke Sharon
Deke Sharon (born December 12, 1967) is an American singer, arranger, composer, director, producer and teacher of a cappella music, and is one of the leaders and promoters of the contemporary a cappella community. He has been referred to as "th ...
. Guest judges for the series are
Will Young
William Robert Young (born 20 January 1979) is a British singer-songwriter and actor who came to prominence after winning the 2002 Pop Idol (series 1), inaugural series of the ITV (TV network), ITV talent contest ''Pop Idol'', making him the f ...
(first episode),
Chaka Kahn
Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Q ...
(second),
Bebe Rexha
Bleta Rexha (; born August 30, 1989), known professionally as Bebe Rexha ( ), is an American pop singer and songwriter. After signing with Warner Records in 2013, Rexha received songwriting credits on Eminem's single " The Monster" (which later ...
(third).
Seal
Seal may refer to any of the following:
Common uses
* Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly:
** Earless seal, or "true seal"
** Fur seal
* Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...
(fourth) and
Joe Jonas
Joseph Adam Jonas (born August 15, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He rose to fame as a member of the pop rock band the Jonas Brothers, alongside his brothers Kevin Jonas, Kevin and Nick Jonas, Nick. The group released their ...
(fifth). All performed in the live finale, with Deke Sharon filling the third judging seat.
Jermaine Jackson
Jermaine La Jaune Jackson (born December 11, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter and bassist. He is best known for being a member of the Jackson family. From 1964 to 1975, Jermaine was second vocalist after his brother Michael of The Jackson ...
joined as a sixth special guest for the live finale (paired with the wild card group). Due to work commitments Joe was not able to attend the live final so his brother
Nick Jonas
Nicholas Jerry Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Jonas began acting on Broadway at the age of seven, and released his debut single in 2002; this caught the attention of Columbia Records, where Jonas ...
attended and performed in his place.
Format
Each episode of the show features a variety of groups, one of which is a cappella, and the others, ranging in style (community choir, show choir, gospel group, etc.) perform with the show's live band. After an opening number featuring the 6 new groups, the groups are paired off, each performing their "showstopper", followed by a back-and-forth
Pitch Perfect
''Pitch Perfect'' is a 2012 American musical comedy film directed by Jason Moore and written by Kay Cannon. It features an ensemble cast, including Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Skylar Astin, Anna Camp, Brittany Snow, Hana Mae Lee, Alexis Knap ...
-inspired riff off on a specific theme, after which one of the two groups is eliminated. The remaining three groups then perform a song featuring a soloist, after which the judges eliminate one more group, then the final two sing a song by the guest judge, back and forth, during which the guest judge grabs a mic and starts singing joining the winning group.
The live finale has a couple of additional features: All five winning groups will perform with the judge that chose them (with the wild card group paired with a sixth celebrity). In addition, instead of a solo round, the top 3 groups will all sing a song a cappella.
Battles
The battles consist of three rounds; in the first round 2 choirs battle each other with a song of choice then again in the 'Riff-off' where a theme is selected at random and both choirs sing songs based around that theme, the judges will then select which choir they would like to advance to the solo battle. For the solo battle each choir will select one member to perform 1 song solo, once all 3 choirs have performed the judges will then collectively pick the 2 best choirs to proceed to the final battle. In the final battle both choirs will perform the same song originally performed by that week's guest judge and try and out sing their opponent, while the choirs are performing the judges will deliberate and the guest judge will then join both choirs on stage and sing alongside the winning choir, that choir will then advance to the live final where they will perform a song with their guest judge.
Episode 1
* Group performance: "
Sing
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
"/ "
Shout"/ "
Scream & Shout
"Scream & Shout" is a song by American recording artists will.i.am and Britney Spears, taken from the former's fourth studio album '' #willpower'' (2013). It was released on November 20, 2012, by Interscope Records as the second single from ...
"/ "
Sing
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
"/ "
Twist and Shout
"Twist and Shout" is a 1961 song written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns (later credited as "Bert Russell"). It was originally recorded by the Top Notes, but it did not become a hit in the record charts until it was reworked by the Isley Brothers ...
"
Episode 2
* Group performances: "
Best Song Ever
"Best Song Ever" is a song recorded by English-Irish boy band One Direction. It was released on 22 July 2013 by Syco Music, Syco as the lead single from the group's third studio album, ''Midnight Memories''. The song was written and composed b ...
"/ "
Shut Up and Dance"/ "
Just Dance"/ "
Into the Groove
"Into the Groove" is a song by recorded by American singer Madonna, and featured on the 1985 film ''Desperately Seeking Susan''. Written and produced by both Madonna and Stephen Bray, the main inspiration behind the song was the dance floor; t ...
"/ "
Dancing Queen
"Dancing Queen" is a Europop and disco song by the Swedish group ABBA, released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, ''Arrival'' (1976). It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson. Andersson and Ulvaeus al ...
"/ "
Can't Stop the Feeling!
"Can't Stop the Feeling!" is a song recorded by American singer Justin Timberlake. It was released on May 6, 2016, as the lead single of the soundtrack to the film ''Trolls'' (2016), in which Timberlake voiced the character "Branch" and served as ...
"
Episode 3
* Group performance: "
Get the Party Started
"Get the Party Started" is a song by American singer Pink, released on October 16, 2001, as the lead single from her second album, ''Missundaztood'' (2001). It received positive reviews and became an international success and reached the top ten ...
"/ "
Good Feeling"/ "
Good Time"/ "
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
"/ "
(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)
"(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)" (shortened to "Fight for Your Right" on album releases) is a song by American hip hop group the Beastie Boys, released as the fourth single released from their debut album ''Licensed to Ill'' (1986). ...
"/ "
Get Lucky"
* Sgarmes was later selected as the wildcard and performed in the final.
Episode 4
* Group performance: "
Seven Nation Army
"Seven Nation Army" is a song by American rock duo the White Stripes. It is the opening track on their fourth studio album, ''Elephant'' (2003). V2 Records released the song to American alternative radio on February 17, 2003, as the lead single f ...
"/ "
Survivor"/ "
I Will Survive
"I Will Survive" is a song by American singer Gloria Gaynor, released in October 1978 as the second single from her sixth album, '' Love Tracks'' (1978). It was written by Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris. A top-selling song, it is a popular di ...
"/ "
Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
"Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" is a song by French duo Daft Punk, released in October 2001 as the fourth single from their second studio album ''Discovery''. A live version of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" was released as a single fro ...
"/ "
Eye of the Tiger
"Eye of the Tiger" is a song by American rock band Survivor. It was released as a single from their third album of the same name and was also the theme song for the 1982 film ''Rocky III'', which was released a day before the single. The song ...
"/ "
Fighter"
Episode 5
* Group performance: "
Die Young
"Die Young" is a song by American singer and songwriter Kesha. It was released on September 25, 2012, as the lead single from her second studio album, ''Warrior'' (2012). Kesha co-wrote the song with its producers, Dr. Luke, Benny Blanco, and ...
"/ "
Beauty and a Beat
"Beauty and a Beat" is a song by Canadian singer Justin Bieber from his third studio album ''Believe'' (2012). It features rapper Nicki Minaj, who co-wrote it with Savan Kotecha, Max Martin and Zedd. It was also produced by the latter two with a ...
"/ "
Turn the Beat Around
"Turn the Beat Around" is a disco song written by Gerald Jackson and Peter Jackson, and performed by American actress and singer Vicki Sue Robinson in 1976 (see 1976 in music), originally appearing on her debut album, '' Never Gonna Let You Go' ...
"/ "
Boom Boom Pow
"Boom Boom Pow" is a song recorded by American group the Black Eyed Peas for their fifth studio album '' The E.N.D.'' (2009). It was written by group members will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo and Fergie, being produced by will.i.am. The song feature ...
"/ "
Rhythm Nation
"Rhythm Nation" is a song by American singer Janet Jackson, released as the second single from her fourth studio album, ''Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814'' (1989). It was written and produced by Jackson, in collaboration with Jimmy Jam and T ...
"/ "
Rhythm Is Gonna Get You
"Rhythm Is Gonna Get You" is a song written by Enrique "Kiki" Garcia and Gloria Estefan, and released by Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine in 1987 as the lead single from the album '' Let It Loose'' (and the European version of the album '' ...
"
Live final
Group Performance: "
Hold My Hand" / "
My Life Would Suck Without You
"My Life Would Suck Without You" is a song by American singer Kelly Clarkson from her fourth studio album, '' All I Ever Wanted'' (2009). The song features songwriting credits from Max Martin, Lukasz Gottwald, and Claude Kelly and production cre ...
" / "
We Are Family" / "
Music Sounds Better With You" / "
Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now
"Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" is a song co-written by Diane Warren and Albert Hammond and recorded by American rock band Starship for their second studio album, '' No Protection'' (1987). It is a power ballad duet featuring vocalists Grace Sl ...
/ "
We're All In This Together" / "
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...
"
Guest Performers:
Rita Ora
Rita Sahatçiu Ora (born Rita Sahatçiu; 26 November 1990) is a British singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence in February 2012 when she featured on DJ Fresh's single, "Hot Right Now", which reached number one in the UK. Her debut studi ...
– "
Your Song
"Your Song" is a song written by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin, and performed by John. It was John's first international Top 10 chart single.
"Your Song" was first released by American rock band Three Dog Night in M ...
"
References
External links
*
*
* {{UKGameshow, Pitch_Battle
2017 British television series debuts
2017 British television series endings
2010s British reality television series
BBC high definition shows
BBC reality television shows
English-language television shows
Singing talent shows