Every February, Skyline Auditorium hosts a collection of pop-acapella groups (á la Pitch Perfect) for the annual International Championship of High School Acapella (ICHSA) Midwest Quarter Finals.
Skyline’s resident group, the Ann Arbor Skyline Blues, has competed 15 out of the last 24 years that ICHSA has run. In that time, Blues has received a number of accolades for their performances, including second place overall in the 2019 finals.
On Friday, February 20th, Blues took the stage again for their quarterfinal performance after months of preparation, and their efforts paid off. For the first time since 2023, Skyline Blues took first place, with a grand total of 390 points, and won three different special awards.
Skyline Blues member William Powers (‘26) won two out of the four available awards, the first being Outstanding Vocal Percussion for “Uninvited.”
“It feels really crazy,” said Powers. “I’ve been working so hard…that I’ve kind of not been thinking about being the most outstanding at any of the things. I just wanted to do my best work and help the group succeed.”
Edwin Jackson (‘27) shares the second award with Powers for their joint work on “Uninvited,” which won Outstanding Choreography.
“It was such a fun moment,” Jackson says. “It was mainly inspiring…I just want to do more because of it.”
In addition to the Outstanding Vocal Percussion and Outstanding Choreography awards, the Outstanding Soloist award was given to Zoe Sangsland (‘26) for her performance of “Uninvited.” This is Sangsland’s second consecutive year achieving this particular accolade, and this year she is joined by a second winner, Kendra Dame of From The Top from Northview Highschool (Grand Rapids).
In several weeks, the ICHSA Midwest Semifinals will take place in Indianapolis, where Blues will perform their set once again, hoping to move on to finals.
According to Skyline Blues member Lily Toohey (‘26), the group is fired up and ready to go. “I’m so excited for semifinals!” says Toohey. “It’s a new venue we haven’t been to…and we get to go with our friends from Northview. I don’t even care if the journey ends there [because] it’s going to be so fun.”
Note: The author is an active participant in Skyline Blues.
