Raised in Europe by parents with a Dixieland jazz band performing the same 30-40 songs their entire career, Toby Gad says, “In my mom's womb, I already knew their entire repertoire.” Gad and brother Jens joked early on that they could predict every note of their father’s improvised clarinet solo. “Maybe that's why I'm a songwriter,” adds Gad. “I wanted to break out of the repetition.” Recognized for work with Andrea Bocelli, Paul McCartney, Bon Jovi, Demi Lovato, Kelly Clarkson, Sean Paul, Jessie J, Selena Gomez, Halestorm, and more, Gad represents a perfect blend of preparation, self-awareness, and great timing.
Creating and performing music during intermissions of their parents’ shows, the Gads’ lives changed after giving demos to producer Frank Farian (Bony M, No Mercy, Milli Vanilli). Already building momentum with “Girl You Know It’s True,” Farian had a tight album deadline and the arrival of their songs came at the perfect time and Milli Vanilli’s Girl You Know It’s True blew up. An artist deal and tour for the Gads followed with limited success, and scoring didn’t click either. The songwriting path became clear. Says Gad, “I like to focus on pop songs rather than attach to a movie that may die and then the music's gone.”
Starting with a conversation and pulling ideas from the exchange, Gad says he improvises on the guitar or piano, continuing with the artist until they find a chorus, then builds the verses. “If I find that [chorus], writing the song is easy, like filling in the blanks,” he says. “If I don't, it's frustrating because I don't know where it's going. I like to have direction, our hook, our title, then find a way to tell a story.” For “All of Me,” Gad says John Legend walked into the studio needing to write a love song, went straight to the piano, and [sang] “all of me loves all of you,” then said, “that's all I have.” Gad thought of his wife and added, “love your curves and all your edges, all your perfect imperfections.” The two traded back and forth. Shares Gad, “within an hour and a half, we had finished, and it felt honest.”
Never an advocate of traditional music training, Gad says “the less you learn, the more you find your unique way of interpreting. The only way to survive is to have your own distinct identity in which you do things. Schools probably teach you the opposite.” He doesn’t listen to pop music either. “When I listen to music, it's sitar, Pakistani Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Indian Raga, old jazz singers, or classical violin,” says Gad. “I'm too tempted to imitate [and] listening to pop feels like work because my brain constantly analyzes.”
His advice? “Do things your way. Try to be truly original and listen to your own instincts. I've never learned how to read score or anything. I feel it until I want to record it.” Gad says music is like a painting. “If you see it and you don't feel anything, it means nothing to you, even if it's a hundred million dollar painting, but if someone with a guitar on the street sings something and you start to cry, it's very valuable.”
Historically working only with well-established or signed artists, labels are no longer fan gatekeepers. 2022’s stint on German Idol brought fresh perspective, with a newfound desire to showcase rising talent and release independently. Gad’s latest project includes 16 reworked (piano, vocal, strings) originals with Victoria Justice, Keke Palmer, Aloe Blacc, Johnny Orlando, Angelina Jordan, and others. Moving forward, Gad now wants “everything that comes out to have a Piano Diaries version, parallel-released.”
With two ASCAP Song of the Year Awards, three GRAMMY wins, over 15 billion streams of his songs, and projects including Fergie’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” Beyoncé’s “If I Were A Boy,” and John Legend’s “All of Me,” new collaborations and unreleased music are coming soon. Latest project, Piano Diaries: The Hits (Deluxe) and Donna Summer’s “Run” are out now. Learn more on Gad’s Songs You Know podcast: youtube.com/@songsyouknowpodcast.
Contact: Michele Stephens, Miller PR / michele@miller-pr.com
Experience Toby Gad at tobygad.com
