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From the Studio

A cappella group Main Squeeze raises money for first album

Courtesy of Bailey Pfohl

Main Squeeze, an all-female a cappella group, is fundraising in order to pay for production costs for its second album. The members hope to release the album this year and have been fundraising since November to reach their goal of $8,500. Members of Main Squeeze say they want the album to describe who they are as a group.

By Isha Damle So fresh, so clean

Main Squeeze has one goal — to record and release an album.

The all-girl a cappella group hopes to release the album in the 2015–16 school year and has been fundraising for it via GoFundMe since November.

Main Squeeze, currently comprised of 11 girls, hopes to record three songs this semester and another three next fall, but needs to meet its fundraising goal of $8,500 to do so. So far, the members of Main Squeeze have fundraised enough for 1.5 songs.

Bailey Pfohl, a senior art history major and president of Main Squeeze, has been in the group since her first semester of freshman year. She has experienced recording with the group when Main Squeeze released an album two years ago, but said the group’s newer album is going to be run differently than it has in the past.

“For the last album, not all the girls were featured, so this year we’re placing emphasis on that,” Pfohl said. “We’re going to be doing a song that features close to all of the girls in one song, so we’re switching up our style a little bit.”



Pfohl said having a hard copy of the Main Squeeze’s work is important for the group and its supporters to have. She also said the album would give the group an opportunity to expand its presence in the nationwide a cappella community.

“The process is so fun. To work on music semester after semester is so great,” Pfohl said. “We’ve had our noses to the ground this semester trying to fundraise so we can finish up our GoFundMe and start the album.”

The group plans on using some of its previous arrangements, which include arrangements to songs by the Civil Wars and Justin Timberlake. Rachel Heyman, music director of Main Squeeze, said the group’s song selections are what make them unique.

“We like to sing a lot of songs that aren’t necessarily popular. We kind of do more underground stuff, and then make them more popular,” said Heyman, a junior music education major. “That’s kind of our style. We’re a little bit more edgy.”

Kailey Smith, a junior music industry major and Main Squeeze’s business manager, said song selection for the album is important for the group.

Smith said Main Squeeze wants the album to be a body of work that describes who the members they are and represents them well. Smith described the group as “fierce and sassy, but also fun” and said she is excited to record in a studio.

“I think it’ll be a great experience for everyone to be able to go into a studio and instead of just performing on stage, (they’ll) be able to hear their voices played back to them,” Smith said.

Main Squeeze will be holding auditions for new members on Feb. 7 from 1–4 p.m. in Crouse College. The group will also be performing at the blood drive in Goldstein Student Center on Feb. 11.

“My favorite moment of performing is the second after we step off stage after we’ve just performed,” Pfohl said. “We can breathe a sigh of relief and know that we’ve done an incredible job. There’s this release after we’re all on stage and we all walk off and hug each other. It’s so validating, and it feels so great.”

Beyond performing and recording music, the girls of Main Squeeze emphasize the strong bonds they share with each other.

“My experience with a female a capella group has been incredible. Even beyond the music, it’s about the relationship we have with each other,” Pfohl said. “With Main Squeeze, every Monday and Wednesday, I get to hang out with 10 of my best friends.”





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