M-Pact is more than just a play on words; they are an all male A Capella group heralded for their unique take on music. They span many genres such as “the smooth soul of Stevie Wonder, the percussive power of Stomp, the funk and drive of Earth, Wind, & Fire, the hip licks of Take 6, and the brass bite of the Harry Connick Jr. Big Band.” The collective members include Fletcher Sheridan, Millikin Alum Jarrett Johnson, Marco Cassone, Jeff Smith, newest member Kenton Chen and lastly Trist Curless. This collective was founded in June 1995. The San Francisco Chronicle called them “one of the best pop-jazz vocal groups in the world.”

This electrifying vocal group who aims to entertain audiences by the power of the human voice was born out of Los Angeles. They have earned multiple accolades for their talents such as Vocal Group of the Year at the LA Music Awards, an Indie nomination for the Independent Grammy, Artist of the Year for the Seattle Music Awards, and Grand National Champs of the Harmony Sweepstakes competition. They have toured the most distinguished halls and festivals and captivated the masses with the likes of Sheryl Crow, Boyz II Men, Natasha Bedingfield, Ray Charles and such jazz legends as Natalie Cole and Bobby McFerrin.

The influence these musicians have had M-Pact from the beginning push them “to stay true to the music, regardless of the style or genre.” They have aimed for their sophisticated sound of music to be accessible and appeal to a variety of people. M-Pact has released 5 full length albums, 2 EP’s and several singles to rave reviews. This has allowed their recordings to be frequently chosen to be included in “best-of” music compilations and collections.

M-Pact is approaching its 20^th year and the musicians are continuing to set the bar high with awe-inspiring live performances. In fact, in 2014 they joined forces with New York a cappella powerhouse Duwende to produce a musical a cappella tribute to the musical stylings of Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson entitled “I Wish For All Time.” The groups performed this tribute to sold-out places across the nation. This music showcase and many others allowed M-Pact to be highly sought after and led to them entertaining crowds with a performance at the Inaugural A Cappella Academy alongside other vocal powerhouses Pentatonix and The Filharmonic.

Crowds milled into Kirkland Fine Arts Center Saturday October 3, 2015, and the excitement grew as the 5 minute countdown to Show Time was announced. Audiences were entertained by Millikin’s very own Notified who opened the show for M-Pact. This was the final performance to end the tour for M-Pact.

The silky vocals of Fletcher Sheridan, soulful licks of Jarrett Johnson and booming talented vocal percussion skills of “The Human Drum Machine” Jeff Smith combined with the pure tone of Marco Cassone, Mariah Carey-esque runs of Kenton Chen and the foundation of “harmonic house” Trist Curless transported the audience to another place and time. The audience was no longer in KFAC; they were elevated to an intimate jazz longue/ piano bar. M-Pact was so in synch and their renditions of songs from such artists as Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson were seamless. It didn’t matter who was on lead vocals because their blends and melodies were so powerful and full of soul.

M-Pact treated the audience to some music that inspired the group. The first of many songs from the night was Miles Davis “All Blues,” which showcased a little bit of everyone’s talents. Fletcher had some vocal runs that truly touched the soul while Marco had a wicked good trumpet part. Jeff and Trist’s vocal percussion and bass paired extremely well together. Fletcher and Kenton even launched into a scat off that was unreal and yet angelic.

The group’s rendition of “My Favorite Things” was so new and inventive it was unrecognizable at first. Their arrangement stayed true to the sentiment and emotion of the song, but they completely made it their own by breathing new life into the classic.

M-Pact delighted the audience next with what they believe are some of the best songs ever written. These happened to be theme songs from The Muppet Show, The Jefferson’s and Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. After a few more selections, they closed the night out with a high octane and groovy take on The Beatles ditty “Come Together.”

If you missed M-Pact this time around or you want another chance to experience their spectacular musical stylings, check out their YouTube channel, Facebook page and support the arts by buying their albums.