With Toby Gad having known Casey Abrams since Casey was a contestant on Series 10 of American Idol in 2011, they have recently released I Do – Piano Diaries Version (previously released by Colbie Caillat, who wrote the song with Toby), and while Casey was performing his show at The Jazz Cafe in London, he asked Toby to perform with him for songs including John Legend’s All of Me (which Toby co-wrote). Toby’s podcast Songs You Know has recently wrapped the first six episodes, with the next 20 episodes already recorded, and while Casey was a contestant on American Idol, he got to perform Queen’s Fat Bottomed Girls with Jack Black, which led to Casey performing with Jack and his band Tenacious D at one of their shows. Chatting with us, Toby and Casey talk to us about their recent release I Do – Piano Diaries Version, how the collaboration came about and Casey’s experience on American Idol.

You’ve recently released I Do – Piano Diaries Version, which was previously released by Colbie Caillat, can you tell us about the song?

Toby – My Colbie Caillat song I Do has a funny story. After Colbie Caillat had her debut hit with Bubbly, she sat in the row in front of me at the Grammys and I tapped her shoulder to introduce myself. Two years later, I finally got a session with her and she was in love so I thought let’s write a ukulele love song. We sat by the swimming pool and within an hour we put together the words. Then the song was forgotten for a while, but then my two-year-old daughter began singing this song. I think she heard the demo once in the car and then she never stopped singing “I do I do I do” and she developed a funny little dance to it as well. I took a video of my daughter singing I Do and shared it with Colbie and soon after the song became her next single. Colbie performed the song on Times Square for the Royal Wedding and the song got a lot of radio airplay. My Piano Diaries Hits album would not be complete without this song.

How long were you working on I Do – Piano Diaries Version and how much did it change before the final release?

Toby – That is a good question. On the Piano Diaries project I challenge myself to come up with a very efficient minimalist, mellow piano accompaniment that can carry this song entirely and finding that sometimes takes me many days. I record a few takes of the improvised piano arrangements ideas along with the vocal, come back the next day and do it again, and so on, until I find an arrangement that feels perfect to me. Recording the vocal was quick, but then I spent a long time on the editing. My friend Lauren Conklin contributed beautiful violins, cellos, and violas to the arrangement and I love how it came to life.

Who do you think I Do – Piano Diaries Version will appeal to and what’s the fan response been like so far?

Toby – The Piano Diaries concept really gives space for the focus to shine, and I feel anyone who wants to sing along with the song and perhaps isn’t in the mood for drums that day, will enjoy the song. Personally, I love the Piano Diaries versions with their warmth and parish clarity and this is a legacy project for me. That is very dear to my heart.

How did the collaboration come about, and how did you decide to record I Do?

Toby – I have known Casey since he was an American Idol alumni, and I am a massive fan of his soulful, jazzy voice, his bass playing, and his overall musicianship in general. It was such a pleasure performing and recording the song with Casey and I am proud to share it with the world now.

Is there anything you have enjoyed most about working together?

Toby – I love performing with Casey Abrams. A few months ago, he had a performance at the The Jazz Cafe in London and asked me to come on stage to play my John Legend song All of Me. He intended to sing the song, but it turned out that the audience sang the entire song. That was an overwhelming experience.

Toby, what would you have liked to have known about the music industry before starting out?

Toby – The music industry is ever changing and right now we are witnessing a profound shift that empowers the music creators more than ever. For most years of my career, my songs were dependent entirely on judgements from record labels, and I feel liberated now that anybody can release a song and find an audience with it.

You have recently started your podcast Songs You Know, how has it been going so far and what do you enjoy most about hosting it?

Toby – My songwriting process usually starts with a conversation, and the conversations I have in my Songs You Know podcast are quite similar to the conversations I have with these wonderful talents when we first get in the room together, except that I will also take a little more into their accomplishments. These conversations are my favourite part of the songwriting process and I felt that with the podcast. I’m finally able to share them with an audience. We just wrapped the first season with six episodes and have the next 20 episodes recorded already, I am thrilled for Season 2.

Casey, how was your experience on Series 10 of American Idol in 2011 and what encouraged you to audition for the show?

Casey – My mom had always watched the show. I didn’t think much of the show until I saw Adam Lambert do a version of Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash. He made it his own interpretation, sounding like a cool Middle Eastern sounding jam. I then thought to myself that maybe I could bring my upright bass onto the show and do some jazz.

What are some of your stand-out highlights of your music career so far?

Casey – During American Idol, I got to sing Fat Bottomed Girls by Queen, with one of my idols, Jack Black! He then asked me to be in his jazz show at the Catalina Jazz Club in LA. I brought my upright bass and got to sit in with his famous band, Tenacious D. That was an amazing moment and also getting to play a 500 seat venue in London called The Jazz Cafe. I was also blessed to be joined by Toby on that one and we sang three songs, two of which we wrote together and one of which was a song he wrote with John Legend called All of Me. It felt great to have the whole audience know this song and sing along with us.

Do you have any favourite music artists to listen to, and how do you like to spend your time away from music?

Casey – I love Stevie Wonder, I feel like I keep finding new songs from him, and I always love it. If I’m in a long car ride or a plane, I find myself listening to podcasts. I love hiking, and I love playing video games. I sometimes even hike with Toby up to the wisdom tree in Los Angeles. Even in my spare time, I find myself making music on my computer just because it’s so fun.

Follow Toby & Casey on:

Instagram – Toby | Casey