INTERVIEW: T.3 heads into new territory with original songs
Photo: T.3’s new EP is called Option Up. Photo courtesy of the band / Provided by Fortune Creative with permission.
T.3, the singing group sensation that appeared on America’s Got Talent, are having a busy December. They recently released their debut EP, Option Up, and they are currently on tour, bringing their unique renditions of timeless classics to audiences around the United States. They even have a few original songs to throw in the mix.
The group consists of Jim Hogan, currently in the company of Broadway’s Kimberly Akimbo; Liam Fennecken, who recently starred in Broadway’s Chicago as Amos Hart; and Brendan Jacob Smith, who currently plays Art Garfunkel in the national tour of The Simon and Garfunkel Story, according to press notes. Together, the three performers harmonize their vocals and induce goosebumps in viewers. Their singing has taken them from reality TV to the viral nature of the internet, with hundreds of thousands of followers and millions of hits and views.
As the story goes, Hogan and Fennecken met while attending Penn State University, and then Smith joined the friend group later on. Their stated purpose is to find the balance between a cappella and instrument-supported vocal performance. Audiences can listen to these sounds when T.3 brings their tour to town. They have scheduled stops in Charlotte, North Carolina; Pittsburgh; Philadelphia; New York City; and Boston.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with the trio. Questions and answers have beens slightly edited for style.
What did day one of T.3 look like? How did you form as a singing trio?
FENNECKEN: Day one was just Brendan asking me and Jim to come over to his parents’ place and sing a song with him. We all knew each other through a college a cappella group called The Hyannis Sound and were all known as the sort of theatre people in our respective summers. So when Brendan graduated college and moved back to NYC, he asked the two of us to sing with him for fun ’cause he thought our voices would sound good together, and here we are!
HOGAN: To a certain degree, day one of T.3 looked exactly like it looks now: three tenors standing in a living room around a piano making up a unique vocal arrangement of a well-known song (“Into the Unknown”). The biggest difference between then and now is that at that moment we thought we had gathered to make one video for fun. We had no idea the internet would blow up our videos and send us on the years-long journey that is T.3!
SMITH: The first time we sang together was in the stairwell of my parents’ house. I asked Jim and Liam if they’d be down to come over to record a trio that we could potentially post [on] social media. I had no plans of it ever becoming a group, but due to the success of the first vid, we decided to keep it going! We started recording weekly videos after that day.
What inspired the creation of the song “Dilly Dilly”?
FENNECKEN: “Dilly Dilly” is really Jim’s creation. He brought us most of the song, and we filled it out with more lines about how home can be anywhere if you’re with the right people! We loved the vibe of it and have wanted to share the upbeat happiness Jim shared with us the first day he played the song.
HOGAN: I wrote the song’s chorus while performing in the first national tour of Sara Bareilles’ Waitress in 2017/18, and I had been touring for about 2.5 years straight at that point. And touring is tough! You have this bittersweet feeling of loving what you do while constantly moving from place to place and not having a true sense of “home.” But at the end of the day, home doesn’t have to be a place so much as a person/people who give you a sense of purpose and meaning.
SMITH: The chorus of “Dilly Dilly” was an idea that Jim brought to the table. The song was written when he was on tour and missing home and trying to find a sense of home on the road.
What can fans expect from the new EP Option Up?
FENNECKEN: Fans can expect the same tight harmonies and soaring vocals that they are used to with T.3, along with some incredible instrumentations and original ideas that should keep everything exciting. Song-wise the EP has something for everyone. We have Disney, Broadway, pop-rock and original songs, all with different moods and vibes.
HOGAN: We’re so excited about Option Up because it has all the elements you’re used to hearing from us with brand-new elements on top! Our normal tight harmonies are all there, but now we’re accompanied by some of the best musicians in NYC. And song selection is just as exciting: We have three cover songs, one of each representing our normal genres: Broadway (“Bring Him Home”), pop (“Carry on Wayward Son”) and Disney (a brand-new medley featuring guest vocalists Shoshana Bean, Morgan James and Aisha Jackson), and three original songs, one of each written primarily by a different member of T.3: “Dilly Dilly” (by Jim), “When I Knew You” (by Brendan) and “Giiirl” (by Liam).
SMITH: We’ve chosen three of our favorite covers as well as three original songs that we each wrote. We’re hoping to show a new side of T.3 with the addition of instruments. Fans can still expect the same unique vocal arrangements that we’re known for, only this time with instruments backing us up.
With your debut tour happening soon, are you nervous? Excited? What are the plans for these concerts?
FENNECKEN: Definitely nervous to be heading out on our first big tour with new songs and new tech and new cities. But mostly excited to share everything we’ve been working on. These shows are going to be an expansion on the whole feel of the EP with T.3 a cappella favorites and band-backed bangers, all coming together to hopefully show you all of the sides of T.3!
HOGAN: Primarily excited, but definitely some nerves mixed in! We’ve never done a tour of this scale yet, so it will be incredible to expand our horizons, learn a ton and meet a whole bunch of new fans across the country!
SMITH: I think a combo! This is our first time playing original music and the first time doing a national tour as a group. I’m excited for the shows, and I know it will be tiring but very rewarding. It’s gonna be a journey for sure!
How has social media helped get the word out on T.3?
FENNECKEN: Social media has done everything for us! We just decided to post the first song we sang together for fun, and that video taking off is what has allowed us to make T.3 the full-time, well-rounded vocal group we are today. We owe everything to our followers and people who share, like, repost, watch, etc. We love you!
HOGAN: At the beginning, social media was T.3! It was our only way to get our music out there, and we couldn’t be more grateful for it because now we get to take all that we’ve created on a social media page and present it live for audiences across the U.S.
SMITH: T.3 kind of started on social media. We began by posting videos on TikTok, so it has kind of been our main way of spreading the word. We post a new arrangement of a new song every Thursday, which really helps spread the word.
What do you love about music that harmonizes?
FENNECKEN: I love when harmonies sound so good together that you don’t even notice they’re there until you really think about it. When multiple voices can sing multiple notes but still sound completely cohesive is one of my favorite sounds and one that is really, really hard to create. I’m hoping we’re doing that with these songs!
HOGAN: It’s hard to describe, but there’s nothing like the feeling of harmonizing with another person. The energy harmony creates (whether listening or participating) is so special. It’s brought people together forever, and we’re so lucky to be a tiny part of that legacy.
SMITH: The human voice singing in harmony makes me so, so happy. I love making interesting harmonic choices, and I really enjoy coming up with new harmonies to songs that don’t normally have them.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
T.3’s new EP is called Option Up, and the trio is currently touring the East Coast. Click here for more information and tickets.
