Cups Covers, A Brief History of Cups!
Since the release of the a cappella comedy "Pitch Perfect" last October, cover songs accompanied by cups as percussion have taken the net by storm!
Have you ever wanted to do a cups cover, but haven't had much of an incentive to do so? We're currently hosting a cups cover contest, and we're giving away a Blue snowball mic to the winner! Whoever enters will also be featured in a SweetBeatTV mash-up!
Click here to sign up at sweetyhigh.com and enter the contest. Instructions at the bottom of the page!
In "Pitch Perfect," freshman Beca Mitchell, played by Anna Kendrick, wows the crowd during her a cappella auditions with a cups cover of "When I'm Gone" by Lulu and the Lampshades.
Yesterday, Anna Kendrick released a music video for the song, complete with dozens of "cuppers" doing their thing. Check it out here!
Did you know the song "You're Gonna Miss Me" actually dates back to 1937? It was originally performed by a group called J.E. Mainer's Mountaineers. The song was revived in 2009, when a group called Lulu and the Lampshades from Bristol, England covered the song.
In June of 2009, band members Heloise and Luisa also made a cups version of the song. Within a couple of days, it hit 50,000 views on YouTube.
The song got even more traction in 2011, when a YouTube from Indiana named Anna Burden performed the song. At the age of 17, Anna made it onto most-watched lists all over the internet! Today, the video has more than 3.4 million views.
Since the release of Pitch Perfect, the song is being covered everywhere. Most notably, YouTube sensations Cimorelli did a cover of the song in February, and the video has already racked up 5.6 million views! Since Cimorelli are pretty much the queens of a cappella, we can see why it's been so popular!
But "You're Gonna Miss Me" isn't the only "cups" song to go viral. In May of last year, 12 and 8-year-old Lennon and Maisy Stella became internet sensations in a matter of days after uploading a cover of Robyn's "Call Your Girlfriend" accompanied with empty margarine tubs.
The two learned the song in two days, just in time for a school talent show. With talent like that, it was hard for them not to win!
What some people don't know is that Lennon and Maisy's version was a cover of a cover! A Swedish a cappella group called Erato was actually the first to perform a buttercups version of Robyn's Call Your Girlfriend. Their version has upwards of 3 million views as well!
With all of these cups covers circulating, it's tough to figure out who did it first. What's really important, though, is that lots of talented young singers are showing off their skills through this new medium. We can't wait to see what is still in store!
Are you interested in submitting your own cups cover for our contest? Entering is easy, but make sure to do it before the contest ends on April 25!
- Create an account at sweetyhigh.com
- Click the contests tab and find the A cup-ella contest
- Submit your video!
Comment below if you have any questions about the contest, or if there's a different topic you'd love to hear more about!
