Imagine a member of YouTuber Mr. Beast’s team asks you and your friends to feature in the creator’s next video, posted to a channel with 515 million subscribers. For IU’s all-male a cappella group, Another Round, that’s exactly what happened.
In “Escape 100 Cops, Win $500k,” released Aug. 22, internet personality Jimmy Donaldson, known as Mr. Beast, and his friends must evade a team of 100 Indiana State Police officers. Throughout a duration of 12 hours, each successful arrest would give the ISP department $100k.
Six of Another Round’s members were featured in the video. Their team was tasked with hanging out at a crowded market built exclusively for the video, which was used to divert the cops away from Mr. Beast and his friends. Despite having only a sliver of screentime in the final video — through an aerial drone shot — several ensemble members said the experience was really exciting.
Gannon Michna, a senior studying marketing and advertising at IU, and Justin Katin, a senior studying musical theater, were both featured in the video. Both said the group spent their free, offscreen time on set at the Muscatatuck Urban Trainer Center in southern Indiana singing a cappella.
“We had a great time singing there and just hanging out and being a part of this ginormous video,” Katin said. “Just being a part of that is so cool.”
Katin said the Mr. Beast crew created a welcoming community for the six members, focusing on hospitality and making sure every detail was right on the large set.
“They really take an effort to make sure that it’s a positive welcoming community and that all the producers, all the casting team, everybody, make it known that if you feel unsafe or if something is wrong, that you’re the priority over the video,” Katin said.
Both members said they watched Mr. Beast when they were younger, each having their own favorite videos from the creator.
“I like some of his classics like ‘Last to Take Hand Off House Keeps It’,” Michna said. “I remember watching those with my friends, and we were trying to pick our favorite cast members to see who would actually win.”
Hearing the news that the group would be a part of a Mr. Beast video was a complete shock to Michna.
“I would say my first reaction was just complete and utter shock,” Michna said. “I’ve been following along with Mr. Beast ever since middle school. So, when Justin told us that he had a really exciting opportunity, I was immediately on board.”
However, the team is no stranger to viral online moments; just last year the ensemble went viral on TikTok for a video that then-IU freshman Lena Apolskis posted Sept. 16. The group performed R&B singer Jeremih’s “Birthday Sex” as a birthday request and amassed more than 8.6 million likes.
The group has performed for many birthdays since then and has a Cameo account for those who want to request recorded messages for friends or loved ones.
During the group’s time on set, they interacted with many other extras, including a multitude of Mr. Beast doppelgangers that were used to distract the cops further. Yet, the moment proved to be another opportunity of connection within the group. Many of them were impressed by the production’s large budget.
“This was my first time doing a large-scale production,” Michna said. “It was awesome to see like how much space we were able to work with. We pretty much had an entire street where we could walk up and down and just interact with all of our friends.”
The ensemble said that they would be soon announcing their upcoming album, “Poor Decisions,” to be released in either late September or early October. Another Round’s discography can be found on Spotify and Apple Music under the same name.
For those interested in joining the all-male a cappella group, auditions will run from Aug. 31 to Sept. 1. The group is looking for a blend of singing quality, performance ability, personality and an ability to fit within the group.
“We spend a lot of time together, so we definitely need people that we want to be hanging out with, and we like to be around,” Davis said.
For more information about Another Round auditions, visit their website or Instagram.
