BioShort Bio (<50 words)
The divas of this pop a cappella sextet bring the moves, the grooves and the shoes. Stiletta’s National awards include Best A cappella group (Sweeps), Album of the Decade (RARB), Audience Favorite, Best Vocal Percussion, Best Original Song, and Best Arrangement. Follow: @StilettaNYC Visit: Stiletta.Net Medium Bio (<100 words) Stiletta is an all-female a cappella sextet, featuring pop leads, dance beats and hip-hop choreography. Crowned National Harmony Sweepstakes Champions in 2016, they became the first group to win in every award category. In 2018, Stiletta released their debut album to critical acclaim, and it was named Best Album of the Decade by the Recorded A Cappella Review Board. Stiletta is directed by award-winning arranger, Judy Minkoff, and the group’s signature sound is filled out by MC Beats, who is a two-time recipient of awards for Best Vocal Percussion, and was recently ranked #3 in the world. |
Full Bio (<300 words)
Stiletta is an all-female a cappella sextet featuring pop leads, dance beats and hip-hop choreography. In 2016, the ladies of Stiletta were crowned National Champions at the 32nd Annual National Harmony Sweepstakes, making them the #1 ranked a cappella group in the US. In the history of the competition, Stiletta is the only group to “sweep the Sweeps” by winning in every award category: First Place, Audience Favorite, Best Arrangement, and Best Original Song. This enormous accomplishment came on the tail end of winning First Place and Audience Favorite at the 2015 Mid-Atlantic and 2016 New York Harmony Sweepstakes competitions, as well as Best Vocal Percussion and Best Arrangement. In 2017, Stiletta placed 2nd and won Best Vocal Percussion in the closest competition of all the regional semifinals for Varsity Vocals’ inaugural International Championship of A Cappella Open. Stiletta’s debut album was released in 2018 to critical acclaim and was named Album of the Year with 3 tracks also awarded Track of the Year. The following year, RARB selected it as Album of the Decade for 2010-2019, making Stiletta the highest awarded all-female group in RARB history. Stiletta is a member of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s highly selective Music Under New York (MUNY) program, which aims to bring music and art to the commuting public of NYC. Stiletta is directed by award-winning arranger, Judy Minkoff, and the group’s signature sound is filled out by MC Beats, who is a two-time recipient of awards for Best Vocal Percussion, and was ranked 3rd best female at the 2012 World Beatbox Championship in Germany. Other group members boast multiple Off-Broadway and nationally-recognized voice-over credits, CARA (Contemporary A cappella Recording Awards) and WAMMY (Washington Area Music) Awards, and original cast recordings. These ladies have the moves, the grooves and even the shoes. Get pumped! |
Members
Haley Clair (Sonoma, CA) - featured lead, high soprano belter, nationally recognized voice-over artist
Meghan “MC Beats” Costa (Shirley, NY) - internationally-ranked beatboxer and 2x winner of “Best Vocal Percussion”
Jaymee Frankel (Setauket, NY) - featured lead, appeared on FOX’s X-Factor and was a finalist for NBC’s The Voice
Olivia Harding (Greenwich, CT) - Stiletta’s “Lady Bass” with a range that stretches down to an A2
Stevi Incremona (Fair Haven, NJ) - featured lead, winner of “Best Soloist” at the ICCAs
Judy Minkoff (Rockville, MD) - founder, director, manager, and award-winning arranger
Meghan “MC Beats” Costa (Shirley, NY) - internationally-ranked beatboxer and 2x winner of “Best Vocal Percussion”
Jaymee Frankel (Setauket, NY) - featured lead, appeared on FOX’s X-Factor and was a finalist for NBC’s The Voice
Olivia Harding (Greenwich, CT) - Stiletta’s “Lady Bass” with a range that stretches down to an A2
Stevi Incremona (Fair Haven, NJ) - featured lead, winner of “Best Soloist” at the ICCAs
Judy Minkoff (Rockville, MD) - founder, director, manager, and award-winning arranger
Media
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Music Samples
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High-Res Images
Click the images below to download high-res images of Stiletta.
Awards
Performance Awards
First and only group to “Sweep the Sweeps” by winning in all 4 categories - National Harmony Sweepstakes in San Rafael, CA (May 2016)
Winner (1st Place), Audience Favorite, and Best Arrangement (Judy Minkoff for "Royals") - Mid-Atlantic Harmony Sweepstakes in Alexandria, VA (Mar 2015)
Runner Up (2nd Place), Best Vocal Percussion (MC Beats for "Cinema") - Varsity Vocals’ International Championship of A Cappella Open in New York, NY (Aug 2017)
Selected performer (chosen from over 200 applicants) - Metropolitan Transit Authority’s Music Under New York (MUNY) Program (Jun 2015)
Recording Awards
Album of the Decade (2010-2019) for self-titled debut EP - Recorded A Cappella Review Board (Jan 2019)
Album of the Year for self-titled debut EP with 3 out of 5 tracks also picked as Track of the Year - Recorded A Cappella Review Board (Jan 2019)
Perfect ‘5’ Star Review from three independent reviewers on self-titled debut EP - Recorded A Cappella Review Board (Jul 2018)
Original song, "Get Pumped," featured on Voices Only 2019 compilation album (Oct 2019)
Nominations
Best Sextet - The A Cappella Music Awards (Mar 2019)
Best Original Song By A Professional Group for “Get Pumped” - Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards (Feb 2019)
First and only group to “Sweep the Sweeps” by winning in all 4 categories - National Harmony Sweepstakes in San Rafael, CA (May 2016)
- Winner (1st Place)
- Audience Favorite
- Best Arrangement (Judy Minkoff for "Royals")
- Best Original Song ("Get Pumped")
Winner (1st Place), Audience Favorite, and Best Arrangement (Judy Minkoff for "Royals") - Mid-Atlantic Harmony Sweepstakes in Alexandria, VA (Mar 2015)
Runner Up (2nd Place), Best Vocal Percussion (MC Beats for "Cinema") - Varsity Vocals’ International Championship of A Cappella Open in New York, NY (Aug 2017)
Selected performer (chosen from over 200 applicants) - Metropolitan Transit Authority’s Music Under New York (MUNY) Program (Jun 2015)
Recording Awards
Album of the Decade (2010-2019) for self-titled debut EP - Recorded A Cappella Review Board (Jan 2019)
Album of the Year for self-titled debut EP with 3 out of 5 tracks also picked as Track of the Year - Recorded A Cappella Review Board (Jan 2019)
Perfect ‘5’ Star Review from three independent reviewers on self-titled debut EP - Recorded A Cappella Review Board (Jul 2018)
Original song, "Get Pumped," featured on Voices Only 2019 compilation album (Oct 2019)
Nominations
Best Sextet - The A Cappella Music Awards (Mar 2019)
Best Original Song By A Professional Group for “Get Pumped” - Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards (Feb 2019)
Media Appearances
Radio/TV
Featured on Episode 3 of the Counterpoint Podcast with Deke Sharon and Rob Dietz (Feb 2019)
Interview with Acaville Radio on “Competition Countdown” (June 2018)
NYC-ARTS segment on Stiletta and Music Under New York, aired on Channel 13/WNET (PBS) (Nov 2017)
Hosted the 2017 National Harmony Sweepstakes, the first live production of FloVoice, world’s first all-vocal channel (May 2017)
Interview with Fridays with Raheem Hamilton on WVMR, The Radio Home of The Independent (Dec 2016)
Interview with Acaville Radio on “The Spotlight” (June 2015)
DIGITAL/PRINT
amNewYork - A cappella groups in NYC that would challenge the 'Pitch Perfect' Bellas. Stiletta: Mixing a beatbox sound. Quote and featured image. (Jan 2018)
Marinscope - Stiletta hosts the 33rd Annual Harmony Sweepstakes National Finals. Featured image. (May 2017)
Newsday - Stiletta headlines the SingStrong New York A Cappella Festival. Featured image. (Feb 2017)
Hello Giggles - Stiletta, newest musical obsession, is taking over the literal New York underground. Featured image. (June 2015)
The MTA News Stiletta was one of 26 performers chosen from over 200 applicants for MTA's MUNY Program. Featured image. (June 2015)
Reuters - Stiletta's audition for the MTA's MUNY Program. Quoted. (May 2015)
Business Insider - Stiletta's audition for the MTA's MUNY Program. Quote and featured image. (May 2015)
The Chicago Tribune - Stiletta headlines the SingStrong Chicago A Cappella Festival. Featured image. (April 2015)
Featured on Episode 3 of the Counterpoint Podcast with Deke Sharon and Rob Dietz (Feb 2019)
Interview with Acaville Radio on “Competition Countdown” (June 2018)
NYC-ARTS segment on Stiletta and Music Under New York, aired on Channel 13/WNET (PBS) (Nov 2017)
Hosted the 2017 National Harmony Sweepstakes, the first live production of FloVoice, world’s first all-vocal channel (May 2017)
Interview with Fridays with Raheem Hamilton on WVMR, The Radio Home of The Independent (Dec 2016)
Interview with Acaville Radio on “The Spotlight” (June 2015)
DIGITAL/PRINT
amNewYork - A cappella groups in NYC that would challenge the 'Pitch Perfect' Bellas. Stiletta: Mixing a beatbox sound. Quote and featured image. (Jan 2018)
Marinscope - Stiletta hosts the 33rd Annual Harmony Sweepstakes National Finals. Featured image. (May 2017)
Newsday - Stiletta headlines the SingStrong New York A Cappella Festival. Featured image. (Feb 2017)
Hello Giggles - Stiletta, newest musical obsession, is taking over the literal New York underground. Featured image. (June 2015)
The MTA News Stiletta was one of 26 performers chosen from over 200 applicants for MTA's MUNY Program. Featured image. (June 2015)
Reuters - Stiletta's audition for the MTA's MUNY Program. Quoted. (May 2015)
Business Insider - Stiletta's audition for the MTA's MUNY Program. Quote and featured image. (May 2015)
The Chicago Tribune - Stiletta headlines the SingStrong Chicago A Cappella Festival. Featured image. (April 2015)