# The Sing-Off season 4

The fourth season of The Sing-Off premiered on December 9, 2013. The number of a cappella groups was decreased from sixteen back to ten, resulting in a new format. Nick Lachey stayed as host for the new season, with Ben Folds and Shawn Stockman returning as judges. New to the judges' table was Jewel, who replaces Sara Bareilles, who left after one season. Deke Sharon returned as music director and vocal producer. The music staff included Ed Boyer, Ben Bram, Rob Dietz, and Nick Girard. The program ran for seven episodes over the course of two weeks and concluded on December 23, 2013.
Though the show's status was unclear after the third season concluded in 2012, NBC announced in March 2013 that it would bring back the program as a special like the first two seasons.
A group was eliminated from the show each week in a new feature called the "Ultimate Sing-Off", where the two groups ranked lowest at the end of each show would compete by singing the same song. The groups took turns alternating verses, before ending the song singing together. Also unlike previous seasons, the winner was chosen by the judges instead of by the general public.

## Competitors

| Group | Finish | Number of members |
| Home Free Minneapolis, Minnesota | Winner on December 23, 2013 | 5 |
| Ten Dallas, Texas | Second Place on December 23, 2013 | 10 |
| Vocal Rush Oakland, California | Third Place on December 23, 2013 | 12 |
| The Filharmonic Los Angeles, California | Eliminated 7th on December 19, 2013 | 6 |
| AcoUstiKats Lexington, Kentucky | Eliminated 5 & 6th on December 18, 2013 | 12 |
| VoicePlay Orlando, Florida | Eliminated 5 & 6th on December 18, 2013 | 6 |
| Element New York, New York | Eliminated 4th on December 16, 2013 | 10 |
| Street Corner Renaissance Los Angeles, California | Eliminated 3rd on December 12, 2013 | 5 |
| Calle Sol Aguadilla, Puerto Rico | Eliminated 2nd on December 11, 2013 | 6 |
| Princeton Footnotes Princeton, New Jersey | Eliminated 1st on December 9, 2013 | 13 |

## Elimination table

* Legend
| Eliminated | Sing-Off Battle | Last safe | Safe | Third Place | Second Place | Winner |
| Date: | Date: | December 9 | December 9 | December 11 | December 12 | December 16 | December 18 | December 19 | December 23 |
| Place | Group | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result |
| 1 | Home Free | 3rd | — | 4th | — | Safe | 2nd | Safe | Winner |
| 2 | Ten | — | 2nd | 1st | Safe | — | 3rd | Sing-Off | Second Place |
| 3 | Vocal Rush | 2nd | — | Last safe | — | Sing-Off | 1st | Safe | Third Place |
| 4 | The Filharmonic | — | 1st | 2nd | Sing-Off | — | Last safe | Eliminated | |
| 5 | AcoUstiKats | — | 3rd | Sing-Off | Safe | — | Eliminated | | |
| 6 | VoicePlay | — | Sing-Off | 3rd | — | Safe | Eliminated | | |
| 7 | Element | — | Last safe | Last safe | — | Eliminated | | | |
| 8 | Street Corner Renaissance | 1st | — | 5th | Eliminated | | | | |
| 9 | Calle Sol | Last safe | — | Eliminated | | | | | |
| 10 | Princeton Footnotes | Sing-Off | Eliminated | | | | | | |

## Performances
### Episode 1 (December 9, 2013)

* Theme: Contestants' choice
* Group Performance: "Some Nights", "We Are Young", and "Carry On" by fun.
A summary of the groups' performances on the first episode, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| First Half ||||
| Vocal Rush | 1 | "Bottom of the River" by Delta Rae | Safe |
| Home Free | 2 | "Cruise" by Florida Georgia Line | Safe |
| Princeton Footnotes | 3 | "I Knew You Were Trouble" by Taylor Swift | Bottom Two |
| Calle Sol | 4 | "Pon de Replay" by Rihanna | Last Safe |
| Street Corner Renaissance | 5 | "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction | Safe |
| Second Half ||||
| Ten | 6 | "Tell Me Something Good" by Rufus and Chaka Khan | Safe |
| Element | 7 | "Burn" by Ellie Goulding | Last safe |
| VoicePlay | 8 | "Feel This Moment" by Pitbull feat. Christina Aguilera | Bottom Two |
| The Filharmonic | 9 | "Treasure" by Bruno Mars | Safe |
| AcoUstiKats | 10 | "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke feat. Pharrell Williams | Safe |
| Ultimate Sing-Off Challenge ||||
| Princeton Footnotes | 1 | "Bye Bye Bye" by 'N Sync | Eliminated |
| VoicePlay | 2 | "Bye Bye Bye" by 'N Sync | Safe |

### Episode 2 (December 11, 2013)

* Theme: Party Anthems
* Group Performance: "Let's Get It Started" by The Black Eyed Peas, "Die Young" by Ke$ha and "Don't Stop the Music" by Rihanna.
A summary of the groups' performances on the second episode, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| Vocal Rush | 1 | "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)" by C+C Music Factory | Last Safe |
| Home Free | 2 | "Life Is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane | Safe |
| VoicePlay | 3 | "Play That Funky Music" by Wild Cherry | Safe |
| Street Corner Renaissance | 4 | "Do You Love Me" by The Contours | Safe |
| Element | 5 | "Raise Your Glass" by P!nk | Last Safe |
| AcoUstiKats | 6 | "Hey Ya!" by OutKast | Bottom Two |
| Calle Sol | 7 | "Livin' la Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin | Bottom Two |
| Ten | 8 | "Hot in Herre" by Nelly | Safe |
| The Filharmonic | 9 | "This Is How We Do It" by Montell Jordan | Safe |
| Ultimate Sing-Off Challenge ||||
| Calle Sol | 1 | "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" by Kelly Clarkson | Eliminated |
| AcoUstiKats | 2 | "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" by Kelly Clarkson | Safe |

### Episode 3 (December 12, 2013)

* Theme: #1 Hits
* Group Performance: "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel.
A summary of the groups' performances on the third episode, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| Ten | 1 | "Chain of Fools" by Aretha Franklin | Safe |
| AcoUstiKats | 2 | "Amazed" by Lonestar | Safe |
| Street Corner Renaissance | 3 | "Forget You" by CeeLo Green | Bottom Two |
| The Filharmonic | 4 | "One More Night" by Maroon 5 | Bottom Two |
| Ultimate Sing-Off Challenge ||||
| Street Corner Renaissance | 1 | "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam | Eliminated |
| The Filharmonic | 2 | "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam | Safe |

### Episode 4 (December 16, 2013)

* Theme: My Generation
* Group Performance: "My Generation" by The Who, "We Will Rock You" by Queen, and "It's Time" by Imagine Dragons.
A summary of the groups' performances on the fourth episode, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| Home Free | 1 | "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash | Safe |
| VoicePlay | 2 | "Don't Speak" by No Doubt | Safe |
| Element | 3 | "You Keep Me Hangin' On" by The Supremes | Bottom Two |
| Vocal Rush | 4 | "Holding Out for a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler | Bottom Two |
| Ultimate Sing-Off Challenge ||||
| Element | 1 | "Survivor" by Destiny's Child | Eliminated |
| Vocal Rush | 2 | "Survivor" by Destiny's Child | Safe |

### Episode 5 (December 18, 2013)

* Theme: Movie Night
* Group Performance: "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" from the film Dirty Dancing.
* In this episode every group competes in the Ultimate Sing-Off Challenge by default.
A summary of the groups' performances on the fifth episode, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| Home Free | 1 | "Oh, Pretty Woman" from the film Pretty Woman (by Roy Orbison) | — |
| Vocal Rush | 2 | "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" from the film Against All Odds (by Phil Collins) | — |
| AcoUstiKats | 3 | "Old Time Rock and Roll" from the film Risky Business (by Bob Seger) | — |
| The Filharmonic | 4 | "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" from the film Armageddon (by Aerosmith) | — |
| VoicePlay | 5 | "Don't You (Forget About Me)" from the film The Breakfast Club (by Simple Minds) | — |
| Ten | 6 | "Skyfall" from the film Skyfall (by Adele) | — |
| Ultimate Sing-Off Challenge ||||
| AcoUstiKats | 1 | "Eye of the Tiger" from the film Rocky III (by Survivor) | Eliminated |
| VoicePlay | 2 | "Eye of the Tiger" from the film Rocky III (by Survivor) | Eliminated |
| Vocal Rush | 1 | "Fame" from the film Fame (by Irene Cara) | Safe |
| Ten | 2 | "Fame" from the film Fame (by Irene Cara) | Safe |
| Home Free | 1 | "I'm Alright" from the film Caddyshack (by Kenny Loggins) | Safe |
| The Filharmonic | 2 | "I'm Alright" from the film Caddyshack (by Kenny Loggins) | Last Safe |

### Episode 6 (December 19, 2013)

* Theme: Judges' Choice
* Group Performance: "Shake It Out" by Florence and the Machine.
A summary of the groups' performances on the sixth episode, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Song | Result |
| The Filharmonic | 1 | "Baby I Need Your Loving" by The Four Tops | Bottom Two |
| Ten | 2 | "Proud Mary" by Ike & Tina Turner (originally by Creedence Clearwater Revival) | Bottom Two |
| Home Free | 3 | "Colder Weather" by Zac Brown Band | Safe |
| Vocal Rush | 4 | "My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)" by Fall Out Boy | Safe |
| Ultimate Sing-Off Challenge ||||
| Ten | 1 | "Should I Stay or Should I Go" by The Clash | Safe |
| The Filharmonic | 2 | "Should I Stay or Should I Go" by The Clash | Eliminated |

### Episode 7 (December 23, 2013)

* Group Performance including all groups from Season 4: "Man in the Mirror" by Michael Jackson.
* Nick Lachey and Jewel sang "It Had to Be You" to each other at the beginning of the episode.
* Pentatonix (season 3 winners) performed "I Need Your Love" by Calvin Harris feat. Ellie Goulding.
* 98 Degrees performed "I'll Be Home for Christmas"
A summary of the groups' performances on the seventh episode, along with the results. :
| Group | Order | Collaboration Song | Order | Individual Song | Result |
| Ten | 1 | "Joyful, Joyful" from Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (with Shawn Stockman) | 4 | "Love on Top" by Beyoncé | Second Place |
| Home Free | 5 | "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (with Jewel) | 2 | "I Want Crazy" by Hunter Hayes | Winner |
| Vocal Rush | 3 | "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" by David Bowie and Bing Crosby (with Ben Folds) | 6 | "Roar" by Katy Perry | Third Place |

## Ratings

| Order | Airdate | Rating/Share (18-49) | Viewers (millions) | Rank (Timeslot) | Rank (Night) |
| 1 | December 9, 2013 | 2.4/6 | 8.39 | #1 | #2 |
| 2 | December 11, 2013 | 1.8/5 | 6.03 | #1 | #7 |
| 3 | December 12, 2013 | 1.3/4 | 4.58 | #3 | #8 |
| 4 | December 16, 2013 | 2.0/6 | 7.28 | #1 | #6 |
| 5 | December 18, 2013 | 1.6/5 | 5.49 | #2 | #6 |
| 6 | December 19, 2013 | 1.2/4 | 4.48 | #4 | #8 |
| 7 | December 23, 2013 | 1.4/4 | 5.32 | #1 | #1 |

## Contestants' appearances on other talent shows

* Jo Vinson of Element appeared on season three of The Sing-Off as a member of Delilah.
* VJ Rosales of The Filharmonic appeared on season three of The Voice, but he failed to turn a chair.