Exclusive: Scott Hoying Talks GRAMMY Nomination, Working with Husband Mark, & Broadway Goals

In the a cappella arena, there is hardly a group more accomplished than Pentatonix. With a dozen studio albums under their belt, three Grammys, and hundreds of millions of views on YouTube, Pentatonix has awed fans across the world with their instrument-free reimaginings of classic songs and memorable harmonies.

One of the band's founders is Scott Hoying, but Pentatonix isn't the only part of Hoying's musical repertoire. He has also produced solo work, including his Grammy-nominated album Evergreen and now Rose Without the Thorns, which was written as a first-anniversary present for his husband Mark.

Last year, the artist collaborated with vocal groups säje and Tonality to produce an acapella version of the song, which has since been nominated for a Grammy. Ahead of the ceremony this Sunday, BroadwayWorld sat down with Hoying to discuss the nomination, working with his collaborators, and future plans in musical theatre.

This interview has been condensed for clarity and length.

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This song was written with your husband in mind. Was it always intended to be a gift for him for your anniversary? 

That was the idea right from the beginning. I write a song almost every day, and I've been really obsessed with songwriting and producing for the past couple of years.

Our first anniversary was coming up and, because our wedding was just the best day of our lives, I wanted to do something particularly special. I started writing the song at the piano for him, and I just loved the way it was coming out. I wasn't going to release it at first, so I gave it to Mark, and then we made the orchestra version and decided to release it. It was Mark's idea to do the acapella version with Tonality and säje. We submitted it to the Grammys as a long shot. He helped me do it, and it's wild that we're here. 

Take me through the process of producing a song that is for a particular occasion like this. Generally, how long in advance do you need to write, record, and plan the song?

It's normally a longer process, but this was so rushed. säje only get together a couple of times a year and if we wanted to submit the acapella version for a Grammy, we had to make a certain cutoff date. We had two weeks to get it done.

After Mark had the idea to do the acapella version, I was with Alex Blake, who runs Tonality, three days later pulling an allnighter and arranging it with him. I called säje and they were willing to work on their part the following week. Within a week, we had an arrangement with most of the vocals. It was one of those reminders that truly anything is possible. Where there is a will, there is a way.

I think one of the reasons I'm so proud of this is because it was so lightning in a bottle and it was so magical and it felt so authentic. It's an original song that came straight from the heart about something so meaningful to me. I feel like everyone always thinks that these big ideas happening so fast is an unrealistic thing so it felt really good to do this unhinged pursuit of something in such a small amount of time and it become a reality.

In addition to being your husband, Mark has also been your collaborator on songs and other projects. What has that been like?

I cannot express this enough: It is the best thing in the world because he has the best energy. He's so kind and very socially eloquent about how to express and respond to an idea. I feel like a big part of collaboration is not just about the ideas being thrown out, but also about the vibe that's created amongst the collaborators. That is the main thing. Our vibe is always so peaceful and relaxed and carefree- it flows naturally. If we're working on something and it's not working, we just naturally will go in a different direction. There's never a push and pull of "I want this, I want this!" That makes it a beautiful and natural collaboration in any creative medium. Even if we're not experienced in it, I feel like we can make something special just because know what we like and can follow that.

You’ve been nominated for and won Grammys before. I’m curious if each recognition feels unique depending on the project or if they all feel similar.

For every single nomination, I've been overwhelmed with joy because to be recognized by musicians all over America is a surreal, beautiful thing. However, there was something about this one that had a whole different energy around it. When you're in a group for so long, you start to doubt yourself outside of the group. Am I less interesting outside of the group? Could I do this on my own outside of the group?

I want to be in the group forever, but I love the type of artistry that comes with being a solo act as well because you get to tell more personal stories, and it is more vulnerable. Scott in Pentatonix feels almost like a drag persona because I have my band members up there with me. We can fail together and win together. But when you're telling your own personal stories and it's just you and your voice, it feels personal if people aren't interested. It hurts.

This Grammy nomination was really validating because it shows that you have the skills, ability, and drive to write an original Queer love song by yourself and then put it out. And that it can be good enough to get nominated for a Grammy! It felt like a landmark moment for me and my personal growth. I've been working so hard the past couple of years to improve my skills in producing and songwriting.

I feel like there's a big overlap between Pentatonix fans and Broadway fans. I know that you did theater in high school. Is that something that you'd want to revisit? Do you have any interest in doing theater?

100%. I love theater so much, and so do my bandmates. We did "What Is This Feeling?" in our last Christmas tour and we've literally outlined a whole album of Broadway covers that didn't come out for various reasons.

I'm in the process of co-writing a Broadway show with a couple of my friends, and I would love to be on Broadway. I think it's the most exciting, high-stakes, thrilling medium of art. There is nothing like it. 

That's amazing! Tell me more about the original musical. What are your long-term goals for the project?

It's an original musical that is in the development and workshop stages. I'm developing it with the Michael Cassel Group and they're incredible. The dream is to go to Broadway. We've done a couple of workshops now, and it truly feels like an episode of Smash. You're in the theater with music stands and every single lyric and note you change, the copyist rewrites the paper.

The whole process is fascinating and hard because there is just so much to be done. If you ask, 'Why is this person feeling this way in this scene? Maybe have her say this to this person,' that will then derail our whole plot and suddenly everything falls apart. You're trying to hold all the pieces of this musical together without derailing it.

There are a lot of people involved. We have four writers- two of them are doing the book, and then four of us are co-writing the music. I think we're getting closer. We've been working on it for years and it's been through a few workshops, so we'll see.