Maldonado: Pentatonix inspires young singers, brings families together

July 3 (UPI) -- Kirstin Maldonado told UPI she is thrilled Pentatonix is inspiring fans to start a capella groups of their own.

"My favorite thing to hear is when people will come up and be like, 'I started an a capella group at my school!' or 'I got my best friend and we wanted to sing, too!' And then THEY start groups," the 26-year-old singer said.

"I also love how many different generations of people come. It's a daughter and then her mom and then her mom and they are like: 'Thank you so much. This is music that the entire family enjoys.' It's an experience they can share together and that's the best compliment ever," she continued.

Formed in 2011, the Grammy-winning group also includes vocalists Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kevin Olusola and Matt Sallee.

They have scheduled with Live Nation 39 shows throughout the United States and Canada this summer to support their latest album PTX Presents: Top Pop, Vol. I, which features covers of Camila Cabello's "Havana," Demi Lovato's "Sorry Not Sorry," Bruno Mars' "Finesse" and Ed Sheeran's "Perfect," among others.

"It's going to be an entirely new set. We are very excited," Maldonado said. "We do a cover of Charlie Puth's 'Attention' that I really, really love and I think really grooves. For a while, we would incorporate a couple of new songs into our set, but this is the first time that we have so much content that it will literally be a completely different experience for the fans and for us."

All of the members of Pentatonix have embarked on solo projects since they started recording together and the experience has made them better equipped to work with songwriters to rearrange other artists' hits for their a capella group, she said.

"We will eventually do an original album in the future, so I think we all feel a little bit better about the writing process in general," she said.