<P> Their debut EP PTX, Volume 1 was released in 2012, followed by their holiday release PTXmas the same year, with Pentatonix's third release, PTX, Vol. II, debuting at number 1 on Billboard's Independent Albums chart and number 10 on the Billboard 200 in 2013 . In May 2014, Pentatonix signed with RCA Records, a "flagship" label of Sony Music Entertainment, while in the same year, the group released their fourth EP, PTX, Vol . III, and two full - length studio albums; PTX, Vols. 1 & 2, a compilation album released in Japan, Korea and Australia, and their second holiday release, That's Christmas to Me, with the album certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), platinum on December 24, 2014, and double platinum on February 11, 2016, becoming the highest - charting holiday album by a group since 1962, and the fourth - best - selling album in the United States in 2014 . The following year, Pentatonix released their eponymous album, their first consisting mostly of original material, which debuted atop the US Billboard 200 chart for the first time in their career, followed by a third Christmas album, A Pentatonix Christmas, in 2016, and a new EP, PTX, Vol. IV--Classics, the following year . In May 2017, Kaplan announced that he would leave Pentatonix due to his inability to keep up with the touring demands of the group; he left after the completion of the tour in September, and was replaced by Matt Sallee the following month . </P> <P> Pentatonix have won three Grammy Awards: they were the first a cappella act to win Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella, doing so in 2015 and 2016, and Best Country Duo / Group Performance in 2017 . </P> <P> Pentatonix began with Kirstin "Kirstie" Maldonado (born May 16, 1992), Mitchell "Mitch" Grassi (born July 24, 1992), and Scott Hoying (born September 17, 1991) who grew up together and were schoolmates at Martin High School in Arlington, Texas . For a local radio show competition to meet the cast of Glee, they arranged and submitted a trio version of "Telephone". Despite losing the competition, their singing sparked attention at their school, and they began performing . Their version of "Telephone" by Lady Gaga featuring Beyoncé subsequently gained attention on YouTube . </P> <P> Hoying and Maldonado both graduated from Martin High School in 2010, Grassi in 2011 . Hoying went off to the University of Southern California (USC) to pursue a bachelor's degree in Popular Music, while Maldonado pursued a Musical Theater major at the University of Oklahoma . While at USC, Scott Hoying joined an a cappella group called SoCal VoCals . He found out about The Sing - Off from another member of the group, Ben Bram (also their arranger, producer, and sound engineer), and was encouraged to audition for the show . He persuaded Maldonado and Grassi to join him, but Bram suggested having a bass and beatboxer as well to support the group Through a mutual friend, Hoying met Avriel "Avi" Kaplan (born April 17, 1989), a highly recognized vocal bass in the a cappella community . Then, the trio found Kevin Olusola (born October 5, 1988) on YouTube, where one of his videos in which he was simultaneously beatboxing and playing the cello (called "celloboxing") had gone viral . Olusola was born in Owensboro, Kentucky, and graduated pre-med from Yale University . He speaks fluent Mandarin after spending a year studying in China . </P>

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