Building the Band Netflix: Season 1 Ends with 3QUENCY’s Victory

The Season 1 winner of Netflix's new music competition Building the Band has been crowned. After weeks of rehearsing, performing live, and being mentored by the brightest in the industry, the girl group 3QUENCY won the big prize.

The group of three - Brianna Mazzola, Nori Royale, and Wennely Quezada - had a fantastic performance in the season-ending episode. They performed both "Have Mercy" by Chlöe and "Always Be My Baby" by Mariah Carey for their final performance, impressing the judges as well as viewers at home. With their entertaining stage presence, harmonies, and connection, 3QUENCY made waves in what was a very tight final round.

They faced off against another strong collective, SZN4, but it was 3QUENCY's steady growth and powerful stage presence that showed through and were rewarded in the long run. 3QUENCY will be awarded $500,000 which they plan to use to establish their music careers, including making some original music and possibly seeing if they can go on tour.
The show was hosted by Backstreet Boys singer AJ McLean, with a star-studded judging panel including Kelly Rowland, Nicole Scherzinger, and Liam Payne. At the finale, the judging panel praised 3QUENCY for their discipline, teamwork and storytelling through emotion in their music.

Muni Long surprised 3Quency from Building The Band on the stage at Netflix Summer Break and it was everything! pic.twitter.com/2GvQtaz73x

— Netflix (@netflix) July 19, 2025

How 3QUENCY Rose to the Top

3QUENCY was not seen as a leader at the start of the season. The group was slow to start, but built momentum through effort and connectivity. The singers dedicated long rehearsals, through illness and poor weather, both individually as singers, and growing as a team.

Judge Nicole Scherzinger pointed out their ability to remain steady and improve under pressure, saying they were "committed and inspiring." Similarly, Liam Payne said they had one the best bands and chemistry within the show.

Building the Band had a unique development compared to singing competitions, instead of solo auditions - contestants in Built the Band combined their strengths as performers in bands - their voices coordinated with each other in auditions. They were put together in bands while trained together, living together - then given weekly challenges to face, specifically to build their creativity and team dynamics.

This structure helped build deep connections for bands like 3QUENCY, which resulted in more dynamic performances. This allowed the group to build an online presence and strong fan base compared to the other finalists that continued on in later episodes.

Looking ahead, 3QUENCY is likely to continue to develop original music. Other finalists,  Iconyx, SZN4, and Midnight ’Til Morning are already likely to be pursued individual projects following up their success from the show.

Netflix has yet to announce a second season, but based on the large response and positive engagement, it should be expected to see a second renewal of the show shortly.

Unseen Rehearsal Challenges

The other untold part of the story is the adversity they faced behind the scenes, leading up to their last performance. Sources say that just a few days out from the finale, one of 3QUENCY members was suffering from vocal fatigue, and was instructed to avoid speaking out of rehearsal. Despite that, they rocked an amazing performance, and an incredible afternoon, no doubt with judges and crew applauding them elsewhere.
Sources told us that the group relied on silent visual cues and hand signals to communicate at rehearsal, and were resting their voices inside - illustrating their discipline and commitment to the process.

According to a source with connections to the production of the series, the group was successful not solely due to their singing. All the time they spent together off-stage led to 3QUENCY rehearsing better than any other competitor.

While some other bands on the show were formed in separate spaces, 3QUENCY made the choice to stay together as it meant they could cook meals together and eventually started a tradition of communicating their journal reflections at the end of each night. Producers would often comment on how the closeness they had was evident in every rehearsal and resulted in the group delivering smoother final harmonies and stronger performances on stage, especially when faced with stressful situations.

Image Source: Parade.com