Biographies

A cappella sensation Voctave has had over 150 million social media views of their videos, and their latest album, The Spirit of the Season, Deluxe Edition, reached No. 6 on the Billboard charts. Their previous album, The Corner of Broadway & Main Street Vol. 2, debuted at number 3 on the iTunes charts. Formed in 2015 by producer and arranger Jamey Ray, the voices that bring their arrangements to life represent a wealth of diverse backgrounds and musical experiences. Hailing from Central Florida, the eleven members of Voctave have performed across the globe and appear on countless recordings. The group has performed with GRAMMY, Dove and American Music Award recipients including Sandi Patty, Pentatonix's Kirstin Maldonado, Mark Lowry, David Phelps, and Jody McBrayer. Voctave’s eight albums are digitally available on all platforms.

E.J. CARDONA

Born and raised in Orlando, FL, E.J. has performed all over the world in a variety of ensembles and venues. Some of his favorite theatrical credits include, Les Miserables (Marius), West Side Story (Chino) and In the Heights (Piraguero) at Musical Theatre West. In his over ten years with Walt Disney World Entertainment, he has performed featured roles in Finding Nemo: The Musical (Crush), High School Musical 3: Senior Year and various Special Events. As a session vocalist, he has recorded in studios such as Capitol Records, The Imagination House, Roy O. Disney Studios, Jim Henson Studios and many more. He was a contestant in the premier season of The X Factor (FOX), the first winner of Orlando Idol (FOX) and recently was seen in GAP’s holiday commercial (national). He has sung background vocals for SuperFruit, Jordan Fisher (ABC), Shoshana Bean, Jackie Evancho, Chris Daughtry and others. E.J. has a passion for a cappella music, performing/collaborating with groups such as Pentatonix, The Voices of Liberty (Disney), The American Music Machine (Disney), OffBroadway’s Toxic Audio (currently known as VOXAudio), Return2Zero, The Edge Effect (“The Sing Off” Tour), ECHO, Sing It (Universal), and most recently, VOCTAVE!

TIFFANY COBURN

Tiffany Coburn has been called a singers singer! Her love of music is undeniable. Whether you hear her singing with Disney’s Voices of Liberty, Voctave or performing her own concerts, your heart will be moved by her voice. Her career has been filled with “pinch me” moments! At the age of 17, she began the “tour” life beginning with the Continental Singers and Orchestra. She has toured with TRUTH, Larnelle Harris and Sandi Patty just to name a few. She has had the privilege of performing as a soloist with The Boston Pops, the Orlando and Charlotte Philharmonic Orchestras, appeared at the Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall and sang for the closing ceremonies of the Special Olympics. She represented the United States at the April Spring Friendship

Festival in Pyongyang, North Korea against 40 other countries and brought home First Place Honors. She recorded the theme song, “Share a Dream Come True” for Disney’s 100 Years of Magic, EPCOT’s Tapestry of Dreams Parade and Sea World’s Turtle Trek. Most recently, Deke Sharon published an interview with her in his 2017 book So You Want to Sing A cappella. She currently lives in Clermont, FL with her husband of 24 years, Chip, and their beautiful daughter Paris.

ASHLEY ESPINOZA

Ashley Espinoza lives in Florida with her husband, Christian and son, and is a singer with the Voices of Liberty at Walt Disney World. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in music with an emphasis in Vocal Performance, & discovered barbershop at her college, Vanguard University of Southern California. In the past she has been a member of the Harborlites Chorus, Hypnotic, Vogue (2010 Rising Star Champions), Charmed, and the Toast of Tampa Show Chorus. She is currently the lead of Windsor, Sweet Adelines International’s current 3rd Place Quartet. Along with her love for music, she also enjoys reading, loves cats (yep, crazy cat lady), and is enjoying learning how to be a good wife & mother.

KARL HUDSON

Karl Hudson is a bass singer who has traveled all over the world, sharing his passion for music and the pursuit to uplift humanity through song. He has had the privilege of recording with Grammy Award winner David Benoit at Capitol Records, Shoshana Bean, Pentatonix, Marc Broussard, Mindi Abair and David Foster amongst other amazing artists. He is the bass singer of MTV’s Top Pop group The Edge Effect, a five man vocal band who has opened for Robin Thicke, Sky Blue of LMFAO and can be seen touring throughout the year. No stranger to the Mouse, he has been with Disney’s premier a cappella group, Voices of Liberty for ten years. He also plays the role of Kiume in Disney’s festival of the Lion King and countless special events for the Walt Disney Company. He studied at the Hartt School of Music where he was introduced to the a cappella world through Barbershop. Karl earned an international collegiate gold medal in the group Men in Black who later went on to become an international top ten quartet in the main competition. After graduating with a BFA in Musical Theatre, he started his career working in NYC and regional theaters playing roles from Coalhouse Walker Jr. in Ragtime to Balthasar in Much Ado About Nothing with Tony Award winner Karen Ziemba and Joe in Show Boat. Soon after he began working as a studio voice over actor landing his first big commercial for Centrum Vitamins. Blessed to do what he loves and always grateful for the next opportunity to share it.

CHRYSTAL JOHNSON

Chrystal Johnson is an accomplished singer and actress who is a 13 year veteran of Disney World’s famed Voices of Liberty at EPCOT, a lead performer in Disney’s Festival of the Lion King, and many other venues throughout Greater Orlando, FL. She was raised in the Great Smokey Mountains of North Carolina, where she began her singing career and received a degree in Public Relations and Religion from Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. While at Lee, she was a premier singer for the The Voices of Lee, where she recorded with numerous artists as well as toured the world with the popular gospel group The Gaithers. She currently resides in Florida with her husband and four children.

KATE LOTT

Kate has traveled the world with her voice, and she began with a broad variety of roles in Regional Theaters around the country before moving to Orlando more than a decade ago. Honoring her BFA in Musical Theatre from Shenandoah University, Walt Disney Entertainment invited Kate to move to Orlando, FL, where she has been singing First Soprano with the Voices of Liberty for over ten years. As a soloist, Kate has sung the National Anthem for the Atlanta Braves, Run Disney, and President Barack Obama. Her signature high notes have been captured on multiple studio recordings. She and her husband Rob reside in Windermere, FL with their dog, CJ Cregg.

DREW OCHOA

Originally from Ohio, Drew relocated to Orlando, FL to pursue an entertainment career with Walt Disney World. He is a full time member of The Voices of Liberty and can sometimes be found hanging around with The Dapper Dans. Drew holds a BA in Music Education from Bowling Green State University and a MM in Voice Performance from Roosevelt University. He is an avid a cappella singer in the barbershop style winning the 2018 International Barbershop Quartet Contest with his quartet, After Hours.

JAMEY RAY

Jamey is originally from Clearwater, FL and attended Rollins College for undergraduate school and New York University for his graduate studies. Jamey currently serves as a professor of music at Rollins College. He is also a well-known choral arranger and composer. Jamey created Voctave at the end of 2015 and serves as the producer and arranger for the group. Jamey currently serves as the choral editor for Excelcia Music Publishing where he oversees selecting and editing music for the choral catalog every year. Jamey has produced hundreds of recordings and dozens of full albums for multiple Broadway and Disney performers as well as groups including Voctave, the Bach Festival Society of Winter Park and the Liberty Voices.

AARON STRATTON

Originally from West Virginia, Aaron moved to the Orlando area in 1996 to pursue a career at Walt Disney World. Over the years you may have seen him with the Dapper Dans, Finding Nemo: The Musical, Beauty and the Beast: Live on Stage, and the Voices of Liberty.

KURT VON SCHMITTOU

Originally from the Nashville, TN area, Kurt was raised in a somewhat musical family. In the church he attended growing up, his father led the music and his mother played piano & organ. Kurt began playing piano at age 5, and later played trumpet and tuba, eventually attending college on a tuba scholarship. While in college at Middle Tennessee State University, he fostered his love for singing everything from Classical to Country. He got his Bachelor of Music degree majoring in Recording Industry Management and Music Industry. Getting a lot of hands-on experience in Nashville, Kurt performed in several shows at the Opryland theme park, sang as a solo artist on the Grand Ole Opry, and toured internationally as a vocalist with The Chippendales. He has performed with numerous recording artists including Conway Twitty, Wynona Judd, Loretta Lynn, Brenda Lee, Lee Greenwood, Jessica Simpson, and Yanni to name just a few.

SARAH WHITTEMORE

Sarah is originally from Greensboro, NC where, from a young age, she sang in various professional touring ensembles and developed her passion for performing. She has called Central Florida her home for the past 11 years, establishing herself as a premier live and studio vocalist. Sarah’s signature silky sound can be heard most days at EPCOT’S American Adventure, with the world-renowned a cappella group, Voices of Liberty. This past November, she was honored to perform as a featured soloist at Carnegie Hall.