Deke Sharon

Born in San Francisco, California, Deke Sharon has been performing professionally since the age of 8, and as a child toured North America and shared the stage in operas with the likes of Pavarotti. Heralded as "The Father of Contemporary A Cappella," he is responsible for the current sound of modern a cappella, having pioneered the modern vocal-instrumental sound in college, subsequently spreading it around the world. He produced "The Sing-Off" on NBC and worldwide (Netherlands, China, South Africa). In addition, Deke served as arranger, on-site music director and vocal producer for Universal's "Pitch Perfect" 1, 2 & 3 starring Anna Kendrick & Rebel Wilson. Deke founded the Contemporary A Cappella Society while in college, and is responsible for many seminal a cappella programs, including the CARAs (Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards), ICCAs (International Championship of College A Cappella), BOCA (Best of College A Cappella Compilation), the first contemporary a cappella conferences (the A Cappella Summit), the Contemporary A Cappella League, the professional theatrical touring ensemble Vocalosity, and Camp A Cappella. He is also contemporary cappella's most prolific arranger, having arranged over 2,000 songs, with many of them in print worldwide with Hal Leonard/Contemporary A Cappella Publishing. He has written 5 books: "Acappella Arranging" (2012), "A Cappella" (2015) and "The Heart of Vocal Harmony" (2016), "A Cappella Warmups for Pop and Jazz Choir (2017) and "So You Want To Sing A Cappella (2017). He is also vocal arranger and producer for the Broadway's first a cappella musical: In Transit (2016). As the founder, director and arranger for the House Jacks for 24 years, the original "Rock Band Without Instruments," Deke shared the stage with countless music legends, including Ray Charles, James Brown, Crosby Stills and Nash, Run DMC, The Temptations, LL Cool J and the Four Tops, performed for luminaries including President Bill Clinton and performed the Monday Night Football Theme with Hank Williams Jr. in 2011. He has produced dozens of award winning a cappella albums (including Straight No Chaser, Committed, Nota, Street Corner Symphony and the Tufts Beelzebubs, Pitch Perfect and In Transit), created a cappella groups for Disneyland and Disneyworld, and frequently tours the world teaching a variety of topics to students and professional singers. His voice can be heard in commercials and video games, including "Just Dance Kids 2." He is one of only 20 honorary members of the Barbershop Harmony Society since 1938, as well as an honorary member of BYU Vocal Point, and received CASA's lifetime achievement award in 2016 and the Tufts Barnum Award for excellence in entertainment in 2017. You can see him on television on Lifetime's "Pitch Slapped" and his newest show for the BBC: "Pitch Battle."