Beatboxing, Dancing, and Music Galore at Kollaboration SF 5

The Conservatory of Music in San Francisco came alive with music, dance, beatboxing, and comedy during the evening of Saturday August 23, as the 5th Annual Kollaboration San Francisco came into full swing.   All the performances kept the audience actively engaged and entertained over the course of the three-hour event, and out of the six finalists, one went on to win Kollaboration SF 5 and the chance to perform at this fall’s Kollaboration Star.

Jay burget of 19 DiamondsJay Burget of 19 Diamonds. Photographed by Christopher Pontino.

Hercules-based band 19 Diamonds broke the ice as the first finalist as they rocked everyone’s socks off with their original rock music- that even included a ukulele jam!

Sister duo Ruby & Donna took the stage next.  Together with Donna’s beautiful vocals and Ruby’s badass rapping and beatboxing skills, they delivered a powerful song about the social pressures of beauty.

Next was Ribbon in the Sky–a four-person singing group who enchanted the crowd with their melodic, smooth vocals.

str8tjacket_kollab5Str8tjacket.  Photographed by Christopher Pontino.

San Mateo dance group St8jacket was the fourth finalist, and did their name justice as they performed an epically “Thriller”-esque dance routine–complete with strait jackets, crazy face makeup, and incredible choreography.

San Francisco-based singer Lawrence Park went on afterwards, and with the power of his R&B-influenced vocals, wowed the audience with a song he wrote that was inspired by Kollaboration’s slogan, “Empowerment through Entertainment.”

drcbeatbox_kollab5DRC Beatbox.  Photographed by Christopher Pontino.

Last but not least was beatboxer Danny Cavero a.k.a. DRC Beatbox, who cleverly incorporated both his special skill for making crazy awesome sounds with his mouth and his sense of comedic timing.

Aside from these incredibly talented finalists, there were also a couple of guest performers who graced the stage as well. Pleasant Hill acapella group LVL5, a finalist from Kollaboration SF last year, opened up the show with a sweet swing back in time with a harmonic 90’s medley.

andblue_kollab5&blue.  Photographed by Christopher Pontino.

Later in the evening, Kollaboration SF 4 winner and 2013 Kollaboration Star winner &blue also made an appearance and showed the audience why they won both respective titles in the first place, with their catchy yet smooth music.

Headliner Kawehi made quite an impression as the one-woman band she’s known to be, as she performed two original songs, as well as a catchy cover of the Michael Jackson hit, “The Way You Make Me Feel.” All the while, in between acts and even when there was some minor technical difficulties, comedian Jimmy O. Yang proved himself to be a great host, as he had the audience continuously cracking up over his stand-up.

kawehi_kollab5Kawehi.  Photographed by Christopher Pontino.

After the judges–which included radio personality Seena, singing group and Kollaboration SF 2 winners ANAK, activist Ju Hong, and actress-dancer Julie Zhan–took the time to make the decision to decide on a winner, all the finalists came to the stage to hear the final results.

kollab5_winnerDRC Beatbox named winner of Kollaboration SF 5.  Photographed by Johnnesper Pimentel.

DRC Beatbox went on to win Kollaboration SF 5 and the chance to compete against other chapter winners at Kollaboration Star later this year for the grand prize of $10,000.  Check out his performance below!

Congratulations again, DRC Beatbox!

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