Tiverton Pair to Compete on NBC's "The Sing-Off"

Two Tiverton residents will be competing on NBC’s hot show “The Sing-Off” tonight at 8 p.m. Paul Lopes, 57, and Tom Duarte, 58, both from Tiverton, will compete as part of the A cappella group North Shore. The other three members are Guy Chiapponi, James Martin and Vinny Straccia, all from the Boston area.

Lopes and Duarte attended  and .

In 1992, North Shore was voted the best a cappella group in the country. Recently, they competed in the same competition and were approached by executives from “The Sing-Off” and asked to audition for the show. The audition went well and they earned a spot, and they will be the most mature group this season.

North Shore was formed in 1980 by three members of the show band Breakaway. For the past 30 years, the group has performed throughout the Boston area and has opened for numerous acts, including The Temptations, The Platters, Frankie Valli and Roberta Flack at Symphony Hall.

“Paul and Tom are life-long friends since the first grade,” said Lorraine Monteiro, sister to Paul Lopes, in a phone interview Sunday. “They’ve been in the group together since it began.”

Monteiro is hosting a reception for the group on Friday, Sept. 30 at . Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling Lorraine directly at 401-835-3627 or contacting the restaurant directly at 401-624-1990.