Watch: Choir Bar debuts ‘One Day’ video from its first reverse karaoke singalong event
June 20, 2018 | Tommy Felts
The excitement was palpable Saturday as Choir Bar launched into song for the first time in River Market, said Matt Baysinger. Now organizers are ready to share the singalong experience with the world.
“People are so dang impressive,” said Baysinger, co-founder of Swell Spark, which debuted the Choir Bar concept in hopes of it becoming a semi-regular event series. “We thought it would be fun to get a bunch of people together and learn how to sing a song as a three-part harmony. … [It was] absolutely one of the coolest things I have ever been involved with.”
About 90 people — family, friends and strangers — gathered Saturday at the River Market Event Place for a professionally choreographed, “reverse-karaoke”-style singalong. The crowd learned and then sang “One Day” by Matisyahu, an alternative artist who fuses reggae, rap and rock.
The result?
With the crowd of singers led by vocalist Jazz Rucker and musician Jared Scholz, Saturday’s event spurred enough interest to warrant another Choir Bar singalong — likely coming in July, though organizers still are working out venue details, Baysinger said.
Watch for news about coming event dates here.
Choir Bar is the latest concept from Swell Spark, a Kansas City-based innovator of interactive, experience-based entertainment. It’s suite of offerings includes popular brands Blade & Timber and Breakout KC.
Swell Spark was named one of Startland’s Top Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2018, in part because of the rapid growth of its Blade & Timber axe-throwing concept, as well as the ongoing development of new business verticals.
The company opened a second Kansas City-area Blade & Timber location in May with 12 lanes at Leawood’s Town Center Plaza. Another location in Wichita is expected to open in July, with Blade & Timber soon expanding to the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, as well as to sites in Portland, Seattle, Springfield and St. Louis, Missouri, Oakland, Honolulu, and Miami.
Featured Business

2018 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Techstars Spotlight: Software platform courts easy-to-manage litigation data
Amid a digitized world, the legal industry is among the “last frontier” for tech, Thadd Hale said. “There is a lot of opportunity in the legal space,” said Hale, co-founder and CEO of Vector Legal Method. “Litigation as a whole is not very structured or standardized. As you can imagine, lack of standardization can be…
Techweek KC to feature local leaders, hiring fair, grant competition
Techweek is a natural fit for Kansas City, Amanda Signorelli said. “Kansas City is one of the country’s most influential, up-and-coming tech hubs,” Signorelli, Techweek CEO, said in a release. “The community has given Techweek a warm welcome.” The Chicago-based conference series, which focuses on innovation and entrepreneurship, returns to the City of Fountains for…
Events Preview: Tech CEO Speaker Series, ECJC sales series
There are a plethora of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter, or curious community member — we recommend these upcoming events for you. Are you hosting a relevant community event? Add it to the KCSourceLink Calendar for increased exposure. Email info@kcsourcelink.com for assistance. Animal Health…
LaunchKC reveals 2017 finalists for $500K grant pool
LaunchKC on Friday announced 20 finalists vying for $500,000 in grants. The popular grants contest will award eight startups each a $50,000 non-dilutive grant and one firm a grand prize of $100,000 after a live pitch competition at Techweek Kansas City on Sept. 15. Techweek Kansas City is scheduled from Sept. 11 to Sept. 15…
