Mosula Tapusoa

Written by Caroline Kawabe | Designed by Shelby Mitchell | Graphics by Madison Mercado

The Man of Many Hats

This profile was chosen to spotlight and tell the story of an extraordinary artist, athlete, and person. Hopefully, his story could inspire others to use their passions together to create something beautiful just as he did.

Fall of 2021, the start of his senior year: at 7:15 a.m. every morning, you can find him dripping in sweat, pushing weights up and down the football field; by 10:00 a.m., you can find him singing harmonies to a beautiful Latin choral arrangement on the risers of the choir room; at 5:00 p.m., you can find him back on the football field knocking down and tackling opposing players.

He goes by Mo, and he’s a man of many hats.

Mosula Tapusoa played right guard for the number one-ranked high school football team in America and currently plays division-one football at Morgan State University. At about six feet tall and shy of 300 pounds, he has the frame and build of a football player. Clearly very strong, he would likely tower over you if you were to stand in front of him. One might see him as intimidating at first. But what you might not guess about Tapusoa at first glance is that he has the voice of an angel.

Born and raised in a small town in Hawaii, Tapusoa, 18, stands as the second youngest of eight kids. The Tapusoa family moved to California just before Mosula’s freshman year of high school. Although they had originally planned to move back, Mosula’s success at Mater Dei High School gave the family hope and reason to stay.

Tapusoa played right guard for the Monarchs, but he had another role on the team as well: a leader. As a senior, Tapusoa was one of the veteran players on the team. He had taken it upon himself to look out for his younger teammates and be a voice of encouragement for his team.

If you were to attend almost any Mater Dei High School football game last year, you would probably see the sun begin to set over the Santa Ana Bowl as the Monarchs on the field and in the stands are decked out in their best scarlet and gray. With your ears, you would hear Tapusoa’s vocals throughout the game. His teammates considered him to be the “vocal guy,” or the one who was always cheering and trying to keep the energy alive. Tapusoa’s vocal and lively presence attracted members of the choral program to him.

It was a day like any other, Tapusoa was spending his sophomore year lunchtime at the piano hidden in the old gym-turned-theater at school, playing around with some of his buddies. Just down the hall sat Scott Melvin, the Director of Performing Arts, in his office having a meeting with Stefan Miller, the head vocal instructor within the choral department. Miller heard Tapusoa’s angelic, soulful voice echoing through the hallway and immediately went to find the source. As Miller marched into the pavilion, he found Tapusoa and a teammate at the piano. Miller asked if the voice he heard was Tapusoa, and Tapusoa nodded. The vocal instructor asked Tapusoa to sing again, and he hesitantly continued to sing.

Miller asked Tapusoa to follow him. Thinking he was about to get sent to the Dean’s office, Tapusoa nervously followed Miller. Instead, Miller took Tapusoa straight to the choir room where he introduced Tapusoa to Jodi Reed, the Director of the Choral Department. Miller introduced the two and explained what he saw to Reed.

“I want you in my choir,” said Reed.

Tapusoa was shocked; he did not know what to think. He explained that he had always really wanted to join the choir, but did not know if it was too late or how to fit it into his schedule. Reed told Tapusoa that if he wanted to join, she would take care of it. And that she did! All he needed was parental permission.

Tapusoa’s parents had always been supportive of his artistic endeavors; Tapusoa’s dad was the one who first introduced him to music. He recalls his father encouraging all the kids to sing at every family gathering and that he was a great guitarist. In awe of his father’s musical abilities, Tapusoa asked his father to teach him how to play the guitar. Thus, his love for music was born.

When it came time for Tapusoa to join the choir, his parents were happy for him but did have concerns. As parents do, they wanted the best for their Mo. They knew he already had an incredibly rigorous schedule with the competitiveness and intensity of Mater Dei football and academics, and they did not want him to fall behind in school as a result. Tapusoa knew he had his work cut out for him, but he was excited to start this new chapter.

“I joined the choir to always have that music part of me in my back pocket, and it ended up turning into something bigger than that,” said Tapusoa.

Within his first couple of months in the choir, he joined Kingsmen, the advanced men’s ensemble at Mater Dei. They even elected him to perform a Samoan piece, due to his heavy influence in the choir, at the upcoming Spring Concert.

Later that spring, Tapusoa decided to audition for the Chamber Singers Choir, the highest-level, mixed choir at Mater Dei. The group has made a name for itself, having performed at venues globally, including in Italy for Pope Francis himself, so Tapusoa knew practice and preparation would be required. After weeks of practice and his auditions, he was happily greeted in his inbox with the news that he had made it into the select choir for the 2020-2021 school year, his junior year.

Tapusoa showed up to choir every day with a positive attitude but remained quieter for the first half of that year. Though he would never admit this to anyone, he was nervous. When he was asked to sing a solo in front of the choir in rehearsals, he felt butterflies in his stomach.

However, he worked up the courage to audition for a solo at one of the choral concerts in the spring. Tapusoa is incredibly talented, no doubt about it, so of course, he got the solo… but when it came time to perform, his nerves started to flare up again.

“That’s when I could feel the walls caving in,” said Tapusoa.

Despite having played in televised football games, Tapusoa had never felt so nervous. But as soon as he started singing and heard the cheering of the crowd, he began to feel better.

However, the biggest turning point in overcoming his nerves was in the fall of 2021, when he was asked to perform a solo at mass last minute. His teacher told him not to think too much; if he just listened to it, he would get it. He could feel his peers encouraging him, as they sang behind him. At that moment, he realized how similar choir was to football. His teammates had his back, and they loved him no matter what. They believed in him and he believed in them.

“Football and choir, they’re both team sports,” said Tapusoa. “You need all eleven guys on board and the same thing with choir; you need all eight sections on board.”

Though, he still says singing in front of a crowd makes him much more nervous than playing football in front of a crowd. From then on, Tapusoa started performing more solos with his choir. He has performed everywhere from The Segerstrom Center in Southern California to Carnegie Hall in New York City.

Tapusoa continued to find similarities between choir and football, as he brought the same energy to the choir that he liked to bring to the football field. He entered the choir room with his bright smile and lively spirit each morning.

Tapusoa recalls one morning when he was in a “bad mood” and Reed pulled him aside and told him that his energy was contagious. If he was off, the whole choir would be off; if he were lively and focused, the whole choir would be too. Tapusoa then realized his place in both the choral and football departments. Both teams rely on the chemistry and teamwork of their members, and he was the soul of both groups.

Though Tapusoa faced conflicts between time management and the occasional choir boy jokes, he found a way to follow his passions and influence others to do the same. After Tapusoa joined the choir, many other football players and athletes followed. He says it gives both departments a sense of pride and joy to know how versatile their kids are.

Additionally, he realized how he could use choir and football together to make his dreams come true.

Tapusoa decided he would work tirelessly to earn a football scholarship to be able to pursue music in college, and he did just that.

He continued to work hard in both football and school; and picked up vocal lessons throughout his school years. He even landed a lead role in the all-school musical.

During his senior year, he was offered a full-ride football scholarship to Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland; he accepted and plans to major in music.

Tapusoa is very excited about the future, and his supporters are excited to see all he accomplishes.

“If you love something, go try it,” said Tapusoa. “That’s my advice.”