Deke founded the Contemporary A Cappella Society while in college, and is responsible for creating many seminal a cappella programs, including the CARAs (Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards), the ICCAs (International Championship of College A Cappella), the BOCAs (Best of College A Cappella Compilations), the first contemporary a cappella conference (the A Cappella Summit), the Contemporary A Cappella League, several professional ensembles including DCappella, as well as the educational residential program Camp A Cappella. He’s a frequent emcee at events, and gives corporate speeches on business lessons from vocal harmony to companies like Google and Facebook.

He is also contemporary a cappella’s most prolific arranger, having arranged over 2,000 songs, with over a thousand of them in print worldwide. He has written 6 books: “A Cappella Arranging” (2012), “A Cappella” (2015), “The Heart of Vocal Harmony” (2016), “A Cappella Warmups for Pop and Jazz Choir” (2017), “So You Want To Sing A Cappella” (2017) and “Teaching Music Through Performance In Contemporary A Cappella” (2020).

Deke has produced dozens of award winning a cappella albums (including Straight No Chaser, Committed, Nota, Street Corner Symphony and the Tufts Beelzebubs), created a cappella groups for Disneyland and Disneyworld, and frequently tours the world teaching a variety of topics to students and professional singers. His voice can be heard in commercials and video games, including “Just Dance Kids 2.” He is one of only 20 honorary members of the Barbershop Harmony Society since 1938, as well as an honorary member of BYU Vocal Point, and has received CASA’s lifetime achievement award in 2016 and the PT Barnum Award for Excellence from Tufts University in 2017.

Rob Dietz is a multiple award-winning singer and vocal percussionist who has been arranging, composing, teaching, and performing contemporary a cappella music for over twenty years. Based in Los Angeles, Rob is best known for his work as an arranger and group coach for NBC’s The Sing-Off. Through his work as an arranger, Rob has had the pleasure of collaborating with some of the top talent in the vocal music world including Grammy award-winning groups Pentatonix and The Swingles, Voiceplay, Kings Return, and many more. He has been a contributing arranger for performances by world renowned artists including Smokey Robinson, Flo Rida, Sara Bareilles, Incubus, and Pat Benatar. His arrangements have been featured on several TV shows, including America’s Got Talent (NBC), To All The Boys: P.S I Still Love You(Netflix), and Pitch Slapped (Lifetime).

As a performer, Rob is an award-winning vocal percussionist, and his distinctive sound has been featured on several TV shows, including FOX's Glee and The Late Late Show with James Corden. Rob was the founding vocal percussionist for both The Funx and Level, groups that gave him the opportunity to work with legendary performers including Jay Leno and Demi Lovato.

Rob has a deep passion for a cappella education, and is a founding co-director (along with Ben Bram and Avi Kaplan) of A Cappella Academy. In addition to his work with Academy, Rob is also the director of Legacy: an auditioned, community youth a cappella group based in Los Angeles. Since the group’s inception, Legacy has performed twice at Carnegie Hall, and has won the Los Angeles A Cappella Festival’s Scholastic Competition, the Southwest semifinal round of the Varsity Vocals A Cappella Open, and the Finals of the International Championship of High School A Cappella at Lincoln Center. He is the author of A Cappella 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Contemporary A Cappella Singing, published by Hal Leonard.

Mel Daneke, a multifaceted Performer, Producer, Mixing Engineer, and Educator, has carved a distinct niche for herself in the music industry. With an impressive array of achievements and accolades, Mel's journey is a testament to her unwavering passion for music and the boundless possibilities of human vocal expression. From her exceptional performances on international stages to her award-winning production work, Mel's musical endeavors continue to captivate audiences worldwide. Mel Daneke's journey into the world of music began with a B.M. in Vocal Performance and a minor in Audio Production from Ithaca College. Her unyielding dedication to her craft led her to explore diverse musical realms, with a particular focus on percussion, vocal, and electronic music. 

Mel's quest for musical excellence took her beyond borders, as she honed her performance skills at the International Performing Arts Institute in Germany. Today, she stands as an integral member of two internationally renowned vocal bands - Musae, where she showcases her beatboxing and DJ skills, and Six Appeal, where her vocal prowess takes center stage. These groups have graced stages across the globe, from Hong Kong and Taiwan to London, Edinburgh, Paris, Germany, and throughout the United States.

Mel Daneke's innovative approach to crafting sounds with the human voice has garnered her immense recognition. Her production work has received more than 25 Contemporary A Cappella Awards and 15 A Cappella Video Awards. As a testament to her expertise and contributions to the music industry, she has been honored as a voting member of The Recording Academy, a prestigious acknowledgment of her talent and artistry.

Shannon Phypers is the Executive Producer of the National A Cappella Convention and Owner/General Manager of Sanctuary in Maynard, Massachusetts. An experienced educator and planner, Shannon has been teaching at and running festivals around the country for the last ten years. She is passionate about cultivating communities where folks can bond over shared experiences and the power of music and the creative arts. 

Ranson Caleb Moore is a singer/songwriter from Dallas, TX. He is a graduate from the university of Texas at Arlington with a Bachelors in Music Industry Studies. Moore has been a member of the a cappella world for a decade as a music director, clinician, arranger, composer, performer, competitor, and choreographer.

Throughout his collegiate experience, Moore successfully led two groups to the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella finals at the Beacon Theater in New York City, as well as the Varsity Vocals Open Finals at Carnegie Hall. In addition to receiving numerous outstanding arrangement awards, his groups have also recorded on Patti Labelle's Christmas album, his original music/arrangement has been nominated for a Contemporary  A Cappella Recording Award for Best Original Song, and filmed for a national Cheerios commercial in partnership with Ellen Degeneres. Moore’s passion for a cappella is evident in each arrangement and through every performance.

Caleb is currently residing in Nashville, TN and is pursuing a professional career in arranging, performing, and teaching.

Christopher (they/them) is a singer, songwriter, arranger and vocal coach from Newport News, VA. A graduate of the FSU School of Music, they led the co-ed All-Night Yahtzee to three consecutive ICCA Finals appearances and is a two-time winner of the Outstanding Soloist award. As a coach, Christopher has adjudicated, sung and instructed at vocal festivals across Asia, Europe, Australia and the US. In 2012, Christopher joined the music team of The Sing-Off (Season 3). After the show, they co-founded the international touring group, The Exchange, which has performed hundreds of shows for audiences in over 25 different countries on 6 continents. The Exchange joined The Backstreet Boys as support for their 32 city “In A World Like This” stadium tour, and competed on Season 5 of NBC’s The Sing-Off, taking the runner-up title. In 2016, Christopher and The Exchange will tour central Asia as part of a cultural diplomacy tour supported by the US Department of State.