It’s not every day that a 19-year-old wins a spot among Voices of Liberty, the illustrious a cappella group at Walt Disney World. Nor is it every day that a 20-something singer achieves international acclaim twice over. But although he did both, Chris Keough refuses to take all the credit.
He says: “I’ve only recently become comfortable talking about myself and claiming ownership just because I feel like I’ve gotten nowhere on my own. I’ve only gotten here through my community.”
Keough’s musical journey began with singing as a child in his native Columbus, Georgia. “We often sang in harmony together in church, with my granddad and my mom leading the entire service,” he says.
But a musical career wasn’t always in his sights. Keough earned a license as a certified nursing assistant while a dual-enrolled high school senior. He even won first place nationally for an app that he designed to help diabetics and aspired to be a dentist.
Then he heard the Voices of Liberty when his high school choir performed at Epcot’s Candlelight Processional in 2013. Two years later, at 19, he won a spot with the group and moved to Orlando. “That one moment,” he says, “caused me to have the theme of being a dreamer for the rest of my life.”
Thus began a 10-year Disney career that would “run the gamut of what’s possible as an entertainer” for the company. In 2017, Keough—who works full time as a live entertainment producer at The Memoir Agency—drew upon his arts connections to found the jazz vocal group Resolve.
Resolve became International Harmony Sweepstakes champions in 2019. Soon Keough would again find himself in the global spotlight singing bass with Three and a Half Men, the Barbershop Harmony Society’s International Quartet Champions for 2024.
“It’s been a ride. We’ve been all over the world,” says Keough. And the ride continues with his latest group, Orlando Vocal Collective, launched at Immerse 2025 with the support of Cole NeSmith and Melyssa Marshall from Creative City Project—creators of the downtown extravaganza.
Notes Keough: “I pulled from every different genre—from Voices of Liberty, from the gospel choir, from the R&B circuit, from the barbershop world.” At Immerse 2025, the 20-member group performed a tribute to the music of Michael Jackson and Beyoncé. A performance of Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter followed that summer at Renaissance Theatre.
At Immerse 2026 in February, the group featured songs by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. “The goal of this whole group is to elevate our artist community,” adds Keough. “It’s to put Orlando on the map even more as a local arts scene outside of the theme parks.”
Follow Orlando Vocal Collective on Instagram @orlandovocalcollective for more information.
