A cappella group Bloom takes 1st place in ICCA quarterfinals

As of writing this article, the UVU a cappella group Bloom has almost 120k followers and 3.5 million likes on their TikTok account @bloomacappella. One of their videos, a rendition of “Everything is Not What it Seems” from the popular Disney TV show “Wizards of Waverly Place,” has garnered over 7.4 million views. 

The group was formed only two years ago in August 2021 by two friends—Jerick Rose and Sicily Poulter. Poulter described how in order to advertise for auditions to grow their group, they would film themselves singing in parking garages and post it to social media. She described the process as being “so awkward” and “the worst.” But it proved fruitful because Bloom was able to flourish as a result.

In addition to their success on TikTok, Bloom also recently participated in the Varsity Vocals International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA) on March 11 at Vista Peak Preparatory Academy in Colorado; they took home first prize for the southwest quarterfinals. 

Those who have seen it will recognize the ICCA as it is depicted in the popular 2012 movie “Pitch Perfect,” which follows a group of college a cappella singers. The ICCA proudly boasts itself as the only global tournament to showcase college a cappella students. 

Universities all over the world participate each year in this competition from January to April, leading up to the finals at Beacon Theatre in New York City. With around 450 groups in the competition, it is an extremely competitive arena and just goes to show how talented the members of Bloom are for making it as far as they have.

As well as winning the overall quarterfinals, they also took the prizes for Outstanding Soloist by Poulter for “Bad Idea” and Outstanding Arrangement by Rose. Unfortunately, while they did not make it through the semifinals, they took 5th place with only a one point difference from 4th place. Poulter also once again took the prize for Outstanding Soloist.

Of their success, Poulter said, “This year we really wanted to challenge ourselves and do competition. I think we’ve really been kind of validated but also just really surprised and blown away by the successes that we’ve had.”

Speaking on being awarded Outstanding Arrangement, the creative force behind Bloom, Rose, said, “It was unexpected. I value the work of so many other arrangers. I’ve listened to so much a capella throughout the last two years and I’ve learned so much through just listening, so it was a huge compliment to me and my arrangements.”

Even though they didn’t make it through the semifinals, they are still in high spirits and are looking forward to next year when they can go even further. They already have plans for what their set for the next ICCA will be, and Poulter and Rose plan on sinking many hours into arranging it over the summer. Rose said, “We’re so giddy already about the arrangements we’re creating.”

The dedication and love they have put into their work has certainly proved worthwhile, and they will continue to work now that they have the experience of their first competition under their belt. In fact, they have already made history as the highest-scoring a cappella group to ever come out of UVU with the previous highest score being 386 compared to Bloom’s score of 423.

As part of their plans to take Bloom a step further, they will be expanding their group. They do not yet have anything set in stone for when they will be open for auditions, but they estimate that it will be announced by the end of July and hosted in August. Information will be available on their Instagram page @bloomacappella.

They also plan on releasing their full set from the ICCA sometime soon on YouTube. More information on that will also be available through their Instagram, so be sure to follow them for updates.

Chase Martin

Chase Martin is a Senior at Utah Valley University studying English with an emphasis on Creative Writing.