On the evening of Nov. 9, Pomona’s Bridges Auditorium drew back its curtains for the Southern California A Cappella Music Festival, known more commonly as “SCAMFest.” The annual event featured performances from twelve 5C a cappella groups, one dance troupe, Groove Nation and groups from UCLA, USC and UC Davis.
Claremont Shades hosts the SCAMFest every year. Harold Fuson PZ ’26, emcee of the event and president of the Claremont Shades, said event preparations begin at the end of each spring semester.
“We reached out to the Big Bridges team about when the best date for SCAMFest would be in May, and reserved the auditorium then,” Fuson said.
Clustered lines of families, friends and students stretched back 30 yards as audience members waited for the auditorium to open its doors.
“This year, we did something different and invited all the Claremont a cappella groups to sign up for shifts to sell physical tickets, so I also made sure everything was set up for that,” Fuson said.
Each a cappella group prepared two arrangements of two to four songs. The human voice covers every aspect of the music, including percussion and bass. In addition to vocal performances, they rehearse choreography and block their set.
“The week of SCAM, we’re in dance studios every day fine tuning everything and running the set as a whole so that we feel confident with everything,” Fuson said.
SCAMFest tickets were in high demand; lines streamed out onto the nearby Marston Quad and fans poured into Bridges’ mezzanines. The event also draws a large number of a cappella fans from UC Davis, UCLA and USC.
“At the beginning of the fall semester, I reach out to all of the groups and officially invite them,” Fuson said. “I love getting to chat with the groups from UCLA, USC and UC Davis. We only get to interact with them once or twice each year and so catching up with them is always fun.”
The night began with the Claremont Shades, the festival’s host. The dynamic group started the show strong, drawing especially loud applause for their vocal imitation of Hozier’s “Too Sweet.”
The group picks out songs for the fall semester in the semester prior, leaving time for people to arrange, and votes for songs that would make a cohesive set.
Claremont’s Mood Swing, donned in black and yellow, brought the tempo down with a powerful rendition of “The Chain” by Fleetwood Mac.
Then, the Spokes — a hot pink, all-women group from UC Davis — took the stage with an upbeat solo performance of the 1975’s “Oh Caroline” and a mashup of Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” and Goyte’s “Somebody that I Used to Know.”
Claremont’s One Night Stanza, decked in light pink and denim, performed next; the audience clapped to the rhythm of their a cappella rendition of “Forget You” by CeeLo Green. The group’s choreography was playful and energetic.
Claremont’s all-women Blue and White, who seemed to lift pieces from dynamic, powerful artists drew applause for their arrangement of Chappell Roan’s smash-hit “Good Luck, Babe!”
UCLA’s white and pink Scattertones took the stage to loud cheers, bringing the energy with an outstanding performance of Stevie Wonder’s “Don’t You Worry Bout a Thing” right before the show’s intermission.
“You get to know the different groups and you get to know their personalities and their performance style,” Serena Li PO ’26 said. “So my friends and I definitely have our favorites. We come and we know what to expect.”
As the performances went on, the audience seemed to get louder and louder, the energy rising with every lively arrangement. Performances from USC and UCLA were met with chants and cheers from visiting students in the audience.
“[SCAMFest] was everything it needed to be,” Jordan Lacour CM ’28 said. “It was Pitch Perfect in real life. This is their Super Bowl.”
The one dance group of the night, Claremont’s Groove Nation Dance Crew, performed a hip-hop set after intermission. The performance of Timbaland’s “Give it to Me” and a four person routine to Ciiara’s “Level Up” were crowd favorites.
Claremont’s Black a cappella group Earth Tones, appropriately dressed in shades of brown, performed next. The group drew a hush from the crowd with an incredible and sincere rendition of Daniel Caesar’s “Superpowers.”
Claremont’s After School Specials (affectionately known as ASS) featured cheeky choreography for Aretha Franklin’s “I Say a Little Prayer” and multiple impressive solos in their rendition for SiR’s “Six Whole Days.”
USC’s SoCal VoCals took to the stage with a stunning vocal performance of Sade’s “Pearls” that left the audience speechless. The group featured technically polished arrangements.
Claremont’s silver-clad Midnight Echo got cheers for their performance of SZA’s “Saturn.”
The purple Ninth Street Hooligans — who opened and closed each arrangement with their signature comedy sketches — had the audience clap along to their rendition of Justin Timberlake’s “Mirrors.”
“My boyfriend is in the Hooligans,” attendee Delaney Post PZ ’26 said. “The Hooligans is the comedy a cappella group on campus … They sing and also make jokes and it’s more like a fun performance.”
Finally, UCLA’s all-men Bruin Harmonies closed out the night with a powerful arrangement of “Pass on By,” the group’s first original song.
“I’m always blown away, a little bit, by how good these groups are,” Li said. “It’s really amazing to see people that you go to class with and see in the dining hall just come on here and really be in their element.”
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