One of the rendition’s strongest passages arrives in the famous second section of the song. Here, the members make particularly extensive use of their voices as instrumental substitutes. They assemble several layers of harmony and add vocal percussion between them, reproducing the section’s shifting parts without instrumental backing. Kirstin Maldonado, identified as the group’s female singer, also delivers its notably high note, which becomes a central moment in the performance.

Pentatonix had already drawn a much larger YouTube audience with their cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” At the time of the account, that video had reached 756 million views, making it the most popular upload on the quintet’s channel by a substantial margin. Its appeal was attributed to the group’s harmonies and energetic delivery, offering another example of how Pentatonix approach a widely known composition through ensemble singing.

Covering “Bohemian Rhapsody” solely with voices represented a considerable gamble because of the Queen song’s iconic status, but Pentatonix’s arrangement showed how the quintet could meet that challenge through layered harmonies, vocal percussion and individual parts. The online response carried the video beyond one million views. Fans with tickets for the group’s United States tour later in 2024 also had a chance, though not a guarantee, of hearing the cover performed in concert.