# The Sing-Off season 3

The third season of The Sing-Off premiered on September 19, 2011. The number of a cappella groups was increased from 10 to 16, resulting in a new format. The show created two brackets, with only half the groups performing each week for the first few weeks. Nick Lachey stayed as host for the new season, as did Ben Folds and Shawn Stockman as judges. New to the judges' table was Sara Bareilles, who replaces Nicole Scherzinger, who left after 2 seasons to become a judge on The X Factor. Deke Sharon returned as music director and vocal producer. The music staff included Ed Boyer, Ben Bram, Rob Dietz, and Christopher Diaz. The program ran for 11 episodes, and concluded on November 28, 2011 with Pentatonix winning the title.

## Groups

| Contestant | School | Finish | Number of members |
| Pentatonix Arlington, TX | NA | Winner on November 28, 2011 | 5 |
| Dartmouth Aires Hanover, NH | Dartmouth College | Second Place on November 28, 2011 | 16 |
| Urban Method Denver, CO | NA | Third Place on November 28, 2011 | 8 |
| Afro-blue Washington, DC | Howard University | Eliminated 13th on November 21, 2011 | 10 |
| Vocal Point Provo, UT | Brigham Young University | Eliminated 12th on November 14, 2011 | 9 |
| Delilah Los Angeles, CA | NA | Eliminated 11th on November 7, 2011 | 8 |
| YellowJackets Rochester, NY | University of Rochester | Eliminated 10th on October 31, 2011 | 15 |
| The Collective Nashville, TN | NA | Eliminated 9th on October 24, 2011 | 9 |
| The Deltones Newark, DE | The University of Delaware | Eliminated 8th on October 17, 2011 | 15 |
| North Shore Boston, MA | NA | Eliminated 7th on October 17, 2011 | 5 |
| Sonos Los Angeles, CA | NA | Eliminated 6th on October 10, 2011 | 5 |
| Kinfolk 9 Los Angeles, CA | NA | Eliminated 5th on October 3, 2011 | 9 |
| Soul'd Out Wilsonville, OR | Wilsonville High School | Eliminated 4th on September 26, 2011 | 16 |
| Messiah's Men Minneapolis, MN | NA | Eliminated 3rd on September 26, 2011 | 9 |
| The Cat's Pajamas Branson, MO | NA | Eliminated 2nd on September 19, 2011 | 5 |
| Fannin Family Hortonville, WI | NA | Eliminated 1st on September 19, 2011 | 8 |

## Elimination Table

* Legend
* Place in bracket (Bracket ID)
| Eliminated | Sing-Off Battle | Last safe | Safe | Third | Runner-up | Winner |
| Date: | Date: | 9/19 (A) 9/26 (B) | 10/3 (A) 10/10 (B) | 10/17 | 10/24 | 10/31 | 11/7 | 11/14 | 11/21 | 11/28 |
| Place | Group | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result |
| 1 | Pentatonix | 2nd (B1) | 3rd (B) | 1st (2) | 1st (2) | 2nd | 1st | 1st | 2nd | Winner |
| 2 | Dartmouth Aires | 1st (B1) | 2nd (B) | 3rd (1) | 2nd (1) | 1st | 3rd | 3rd | Sing-Off | Second Place |
| 3 | Urban Method | 2nd (A2) | 2nd (A) | 2nd (2) | 3rd (2) | 6th | 2nd | 2nd | 1st | Third Place |
| 4 | Afro-Blue | 2nd (A1) | 4th (A) | 4th (2) | 1st (1) | 5th | 5th | 4th | Eliminated | |
| 5 | Vocal Point | 1st (A2) | 1st (A) | 3rd (2) | 3rd (1) | 3rd | 4th | Eliminated | | |
| 6 | Delilah | 1st (A1) | 5th (A) | 4th (1) | 2nd (2) | 4th | Eliminated | | | |
| 7 | The YellowJackets | 3rd (A1) | 3rd (A) | 2nd (1) | Sing-Off | Eliminated | | | | |
| 8 | The Collective | 2nd (B2) | 5th (B) | 1st (1) | Eliminated | | | | | |
| 9 | The Deltones | 3rd (B2) | 4th (B) | Eliminated (2) | | | | | | |
| 10 | North Shore | 1st (B2) | 1st (B) | Eliminated (1) | | | | | | |
| 11 | Sonos | 3rd (B1) | Eliminated (B) | | | | | | | |
| 12 | Kinfolk 9 | 3rd (A2) | Eliminated (A) | | | | | | | |
| 13 | Soul'd Out | Eliminated (B2) | | | | | | | | |
| 14 | Messiah's Men | Eliminated (B1) | | | | | | | | |
| 15 | The Cat's Pajamas | Eliminated (A2) | | | | | | | | |
| 16 | Fannin Family | Eliminated (A1) | | | | | | | | |

## Performances
### Episode 1

* Theme: Contestants' choice
* Group performance: "Fuckin' Perfect" by Pink
A summary of the groups' performances on the first live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result | Popularity on iTunes |
| First Half |||||
| The YellowJackets | 1 | "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan | Last Safe | 2 |
| Fannin Family | 2 | "Who Says" by Selena Gomez & the Scene | Eliminated | 7 |
| Afro-Blue | 3 | "Put Your Records On" by Corinne Bailey Rae | Safe | 4 |
| Delilah | 4 | "Grenade" by Bruno Mars | Safe | 1 |
| Second Half |||||
| Urban Method | 5 | "Love the Way You Lie" by Eminem and Rihanna | Safe | 3 |
| The Cat's Pajamas | 6 | "Some Kind of Wonderful" by Grand Funk Railroad | Eliminated | 8 |
| Kinfolk 9 | 7 | "Secrets" by OneRepublic | Last Safe | 6 |
| Vocal Point | 8 | "Jump Jive an' Wail" by The Brian Setzer Orchestra | Safe | 5 |
| Swan songs |||||
| Fannin Family | 1 | "Tomorrow" from Annie | "Tomorrow" from Annie | "Tomorrow" from Annie |
| The Cat's Pajamas | 2 | "Bye Bye Love" by The Everly Brothers | "Bye Bye Love" by The Everly Brothers | "Bye Bye Love" by The Everly Brothers |

### Episode 2

* Theme: Contestants' choice
* Group performance: "Sing" by My Chemical Romance
A summary of the groups' performances on the second live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result | Popularity on iTunes* |
| First Half |||||
| Dartmouth Aires | 1 | "Higher Ground" by Stevie Wonder | Safe | 2 |
| Pentatonix | 2 | "E.T." by Katy Perry | Safe | 1 |
| Messiah's Men | 3 | "People Get Ready" by The Impressions | Eliminated | 2 |
| Sonos | 4 | "Wicked Game" by Chris Isaak | Last Safe | 2 |
| Second Half |||||
| The Collective | 5 | "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele | Safe | 2 |
| Soul'd Out | 6 | "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" by The 5th Dimension | Eliminated | 2 |
| North Shore | 7 | "Runaround Sue" by Dion DiMucci | Safe | 2 |
| Deltones | 8 | "Feels Like Home" by Randy Newman | Last Safe | 2 |
| Swan songs |||||
| Messiah's Men | 1 | "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" | "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" | "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" |
| Soul'd Out | 2 | "Mama, I'm Coming Home" by Ozzy Osbourne | "Mama, I'm Coming Home" by Ozzy Osbourne | "Mama, I'm Coming Home" by Ozzy Osbourne |
* For this episode, only the song by Pentatonix appears to have had any significant iTunes sales.

### Episode 3

* Theme: Radio Hits (first round), 60's Classics (second round)
* Group performance: "Somewhere Only We Know" by Keane
A summary of the groups' performances on the third live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | First song | Popularity on iTunes* | Order | Second song | Popularity on iTunes* | Result |
| Vocal Point | 1 | "Never Say Never" by Justin Bieber | 4 | 9 | "The Way You Look Tonight" by Frank Sinatra | 4 | Safe |
| Delilah | 2 | "Whataya Want From Me" by Adam Lambert | 1 | 7 | "(Love Is Like A) Heatwave" by Martha & the Vandellas | 4 | Last Safe |
| Urban Method | 3 | "Just Can't Get Enough" by The Black Eyed Peas | 4 | 8 | "Dance To The Music" by Sly and the family Stone | 4 | Safe |
| Afro-Blue | 4 | "American Boy" by Estelle ft. Kanye West | 2 | 10 | "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" by The Miracles | 4 | Safe |
| The YellowJackets | 5 | "Dynamite" by Taio Cruz | 4 | 11 | "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" by Frankie Valli | 4 | Safe |
| Kinfolk 9 | 6 | "Price Tag" by Jessie J ft. B.o.B | 4 | 12 | "Let It Be" by The Beatles | 3 | Eliminated |
| Swan song ||||||||
| Kinfolk 9 | 1 | "Loser" by Beck | "Loser" by Beck | "Loser" by Beck | "Loser" by Beck | "Loser" by Beck | "Loser" by Beck |
* For this episode, only the top three songs appear to have differed significantly from the others in iTunes sales.

### Episode 4

* Theme: Radio Hits (first round), 60's Classics (second round)
* Group performance: "Rhythm of Love" by Plain White T's
A summary of the groups' performances on the fourth live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Deltones | 1 | "The Edge of Glory" by Lady Gaga | 8 | "You Can't Hurry Love" by The Supremes | Safe |
| Pentatonix | 2 | "Your Love Is My Drug" by Kesha | 7 | "Piece of My Heart" by Janis Joplin | Safe |
| The Collective | 3 | "Rocketeer" by Far East Movement | 10 | "Hold On, I'm A Comin'" by Sam & Dave | Last Safe |
| North Shore | 4 | "The Lazy Song" by Bruno Mars | 9 | "Unchained Melody" by The Righteous Brothers | Safe |
| Dartmouth Aires | 5 | "Animal" by Neon Trees | 12 | "Pinball Wizard" by The Who | Safe |
| Sonos | 6 | "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay | 11 | "I Want You Back" by The Jackson 5 | Eliminated |
| Swan song ||||||
| Sonos | 1 | "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" by Boyz II Men | "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" by Boyz II Men | "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" by Boyz II Men | "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" by Boyz II Men |

### Episode 5

* Theme: Guilty pleasures
* Group performance: "All Night Long (All Night)" by Lionel Richie*
A summary of the groups' performances on the fifth live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| First Half ||||
| The YellowJackets | 1 | "Wannabe" by Spice Girls | Safe |
| Delilah | 2 | "Flashdance... What a Feeling" by Irene Cara | Last Safe |
| North Shore | 3 | "The Power of Love" by Huey Lewis and the News | Eliminated |
| The Collective | 4 | "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor | Safe |
| Dartmouth Aires | 5 | "Jessie's Girl" by Rick Springfield | Safe |
| Second Half ||||
| Afro-Blue | 6 | "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)" by Whitney Houston | Last Safe |
| Pentatonix | 7 | "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles | Safe |
| Deltones | 8 | "Listen to Your Heart" by Roxette | Eliminated |
| Urban Method | 9 | "Poison" by Bell Biv DeVoe | Safe |
| Vocal Point | 10 | "Footloose" by Kenny Loggins | Safe |
| Swan songs ||||
| North Shore | 1 | "Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite" by The Spaniels | "Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite" by The Spaniels |
| Deltones | 2 | "Goodbye to You" by Michelle Branch | "Goodbye to You" by Michelle Branch |
* This song marks the biggest performance in television history.

### Episode 6

* Theme: Hip-Hop
* Group performance: "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B featuring Bruno Mars
A summary of the groups' performances on the sixth live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| First Half ||||
| Dartmouth Aires | 1 | "Club Can't Handle Me" by Flo Rida | Safe |
| Afro-Blue | 2 | "Killing Me Softly" by The Fugees | Safe |
| The Collective | 3 | "Give Me Everything" by Pitbull ft. Ne-Yo | Bottom Two |
| Vocal Point | 4 | "I'll Be Missing You" by Puff Daddy ft. Faith Evans & 112 | Last Safe |
| Second Half ||||
| Urban Method | 5 | "Airplanes" by B.o.B ft. Hayley Williams | Last Safe |
| Pentatonix | 6 | "Love Lockdown" by Kanye West | Safe |
| Delilah | 7 | "How to Love" by Lil Wayne | Safe |
| The YellowJackets | 8 | "The Show Goes On" by Lupe Fiasco | Bottom Two |
| The Sing Off Battle ||||
| The Collective | 1 | "Just a Dream" by Nelly | Eliminated |
| The YellowJackets | 2 | "Just a Dream" by Nelly | Safe |
| Swan song ||||
| The Collective | 1 | "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" by Bob Dylan | "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" by Bob Dylan |

### Episode 7

* Theme: Superstar medleys
* Group performance: Halloween medley of "This Is Halloween" by Danny Elfman, "Werewolves of London" by Warren Zevon and "Ghostbusters" by Ray Parker Jr.
* Guest performance: Chris Brown medley by Committed
A summary of the groups' performances on the seventh live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Medley | Result |
| Urban Method | 1 | Rihanna medley of "What's My Name?", "Umbrella" and "Only Girl (In the World)" | Last Safe |
| Vocal Point | 2 | Elvis Presley medley of "Don't Be Cruel", "Can't Help Falling in Love" and "Jailhouse Rock" | Safe |
| Afro-Blue | 3 | Janet Jackson medley of "What Have You Done For Me Lately", "When I Think of You" and "Miss You Much" | Safe Group 2 |
| Dartmouth Aires | 4 | Queen medley of "Killer Queen", "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "Somebody to Love" | Safe |
| Pentatonix | 5 | Britney Spears medley of "Oops!... I Did It Again", "Toxic" and "Hold It Against Me" | Safe |
| Delilah | 6 | Alicia Keys medley of "Fallin', "A Woman's Worth" and "If I Ain't Got You" | Safe Group 2 |
| The YellowJackets | 7 | Billy Joel medley of "The River of Dreams", "She's Always a Woman" and "Uptown Girl" | Eliminated |
| Swan song ||||
| The YellowJackets | 1 | "Tubthumping" by Chumbawamba (with lyrics referencing the show and the hosts) | "Tubthumping" by Chumbawamba (with lyrics referencing the show and the hosts) |

### Episode 8

* Theme: Rock classics (first round), Country hits (second round)
* Group performance: "Wake Up" by Arcade Fire
A summary of the groups' performances on the eighth live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Pentatonix | 1 | "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf | 12 | "Stuck Like Glue" by Sugarland | Safe |
| Dartmouth Aires | 2 | "We're Not Gonna Take It" by Twisted Sister | 7 | "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy" by Big & Rich | Safe |
| Afro-Blue | 3 | "American Girl" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | 8 | "Need You Now" by Lady Antebellum | Last Safe |
| Delilah | 4 | "Dream On" by Aerosmith | 10 | "If I Die Young" by The Band Perry | Eliminated |
| Urban Method | 5 | "Here I Go Again" by Whitesnake | 9 | "Before He Cheats" by Carrie Underwood | Safe |
| Vocal Point | 6 | "You Really Got Me" by The Kinks | 11 | "Life is a Highway" by Rascal Flatts | Safe |
| Swan song ||||||
| Delilah | 1 | "Survivor" by Destiny's Child | "Survivor" by Destiny's Child | "Survivor" by Destiny's Child | "Survivor" by Destiny's Child |

### Episode 9

* Theme: R&B Current Hits (first round), R&B Classics (second round)
* Group performance: R&B medley of "I Got You (I Feel Good)" by James Brown, "ABC" by The Jackson 5 and "Crazy in Love" by Beyoncé feat. Jay-Z
A summary of the groups' performances on the ninth live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Dartmouth Aires | 1 | "Ignition (Remix)" by R. Kelly | 6 | "Midnight Train to Georgia" by Gladys Knight & the Pips | Safe |
| Urban Method | 2 | "Knock You Down" by Keri Hilson feat. Kanye West and Ne-Yo | 7 | "It's Your Thing" by The Isley Brothers | Safe |
| Vocal Point | 3 | "Every Little Step" by Bobby Brown | 8 | "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" by The Temptations | Eliminated |
| Afro-Blue | 4 | "We Belong Together" by Mariah Carey | 9 | "Best of My Love" by The Emotions | Last Safe |
| Pentatonix | 5 | "OMG" by Usher feat. will.i.am | 10 | "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye | Safe |
| Swan song ||||||
| Vocal Point | 1 | "Home" by Michael Bublé | "Home" by Michael Bublé | "Home" by Michael Bublé | "Home" by Michael Bublé |

### Episode 10

* Theme: Master Mix (combining 2 songs from different artists) (first round), Judges' Choice (second round)
* Group performance: Master Mix: "Bitter Sweet Symphony" by The Verve, "Hollaback Girl" by Gwen Stefani, "Baba O'Riley" by The Who, and "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" by Katy Perry
A summary of the groups' performances on the tenth live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Pentatonix | 1 | Medley of "Forget You" by Cee Lo Green and "Since U Been Gone" by Kelly Clarkson | 5 | "Dog Days Are Over" by Florence and the Machine | Safe |
| Urban Method | 2 | Medley of "Hot in Herre" by Nelly and "Fever" by Peggy Lee | 6 | "All of the Lights" by Kanye West | Safe |
| Afro Blue | 3 | Medley of "I Believe I Can Fly" by R. Kelly and "Fly" by Nicki Minaj | 7 | "A Change Is Gonna Come" by Sam Cooke | Eliminated |
| Dartmouth Aires | 4 | Medley of "Sympathy for the Devil" by The Rolling Stones and "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga | 8 | "Shout" by The Isley Brothers | Last Safe |
| The Sing Off Battle (reprise of most impactful song) ||||||
| Afro Blue | 1 | "American Boy" by Estelle ft. Kanye West | "American Boy" by Estelle ft. Kanye West | "American Boy" by Estelle ft. Kanye West | Eliminated |
| Dartmouth Aires | 2 | "Somebody to Love" by Queen | "Somebody to Love" by Queen | "Somebody to Love" by Queen | Safe |
| Swan song ||||||
| Afro Blue | 1 | "We've Only Just Begun" by The Carpenters | "We've Only Just Begun" by The Carpenters | "We've Only Just Begun" by The Carpenters | "We've Only Just Begun" by The Carpenters |

### Episode 11

* Group performance: "The Way You Make Me Feel" by Michael Jackson
* Closing performance: "Happy Christmas (War is Over)" by John Lennon and Yoko Ono (sung by 14 a cappella groups: most were from the show's second season)
A summary of the groups' performances on the eleventh live show, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | First song | Order | Second song | Result |
| Pentatonix | 1 | "Without You" by David Guetta feat. Usher | 4 | "Give Me Just One Night (Una Noche)" by 98 Degrees (with Nick Lachey) | Winner |
| Urban Method | 2 | "Stereo Hearts" by Gym Class Heroes feat. Adam Levine | 5 | "Gonna Get Over You" by Sara Bareilles (with Sara Bareilles) | Third |
| Dartmouth Aires | 3 | "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" by Meat Loaf (with Amy Whitcomb of Delilah) | 6 | "Not the Same" by Ben Folds (with Ben Folds) | Runner up |
| Top 10 Ladies | 7 | "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin | "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin | "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin | "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin |
| Top 10 Guys | 8 | "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen | "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen | "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen | "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen |
| Afro Blue | 9 | "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" by The Miracles (with Smokey Robinson) | "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" by The Miracles (with Smokey Robinson) | "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" by The Miracles (with Smokey Robinson) | "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" by The Miracles (with Smokey Robinson) |
| Swan songs ||||||
| Urban Method | 1 | "Coming Home" by Diddy – Dirty Money feat. Skylar Grey | "Coming Home" by Diddy – Dirty Money feat. Skylar Grey | "Coming Home" by Diddy – Dirty Money feat. Skylar Grey | Third |
| Dartmouth Aires | 2 | "Somewhere" from West Side Story | "Somewhere" from West Side Story | "Somewhere" from West Side Story | Runner up |
| Victory song ||||||
| Pentatonix | "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor | "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor | "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor | "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor | Winner |

## Ratings
### US Nielsen ratings

| Order | Airdate | Rating/Share (18-49) | Viewers (millions) | Rank (Timeslot) | Rank (Night) |
| 1 | September 19, 2011 | 1.9/5 | 5.30 | #4 | #9 |
| 2 | September 26, 2011 | 1.7/4 | 4.45 | #4 | #9 |
| 3 | October 3, 2011 | 1.8/4 | 4.89 | #4 | #10 |
| 4 | October 10, 2011 | 1.5/4 | 4.35 | #4 | #11 |
| 5 | October 17, 2011 | 1.6/4 | 4.34 | #4 | #10 |
| 6 | October 24, 2011 | 1.5/4 | 4.63 | #4 | #9 |
| 7 | October 31, 2011 | 1.4/4 | 4.40 | #4 | #10 |
| 8 | November 7, 2011 | 1.5/4 | 4.25 | #4 | #10 |
| 9 | November 14, 2011 | 1.3/4 | 4.13 | #4 | #10 |
| 10 | November 21, 2011 | 1.4/4 | 4.27 | #4 | #10 |
| 11 | November 28, 2011 | 1.6/4 | 5.98 | #4 | #10 |