TC200: Jacob Collier Talks Music and Education - TopMusic.co (2024)

Jacob Collier, the 4-time Grammy award-winning young music legend from London, joins us today on a very special episode, no. 200 on the TopCast show.

Hailing from North London and playing seven different instruments, including distinctive vocals, Jacob’s sense of harmony and tonality is evident in his signature style. He records all of his albums from his music room at home.

(Don’t miss seeing the video version of this episode, available in TopMusicPro membership, to glimpse the overhead view of this incredible space!)

Jacob shares so many things on this episode from the story of how he started playing, to his approach to chords and harmony, to his thoughts on music education. He also shares advice for students and teachers.

We’re treated to a very special performance mid-show as well!

Transcript of the Show on Jacob Collier

If you’d like to download a PDF transcript of this episode, please clickbelow.

In this episode, you’ll learn Jacob Collier’s insights on chords and more:

• [05:17] Coming from a musical family, Jacob shares his exposure to music and instruments from a very early age.
• [06:59] Jacob’s start in learning music, including the piano.
• [08:36] The importance of chords in teaching and learning music.
• [11:55] Childhood musical experiments
• [17:01] His skills in playing multiple instruments
• [20:15] His thoughts on practice vs. playing
• [24:33] Jacob’s advice for teachers to encourage more listening because it is so crucial and it’s been so fundamental in his own journey.
• [30:35] His experience with formal music education.
• [34:18] Making a pivot in his plans with Quincy Jones
• [35:44] Jacob shares the story behind Djesse, his quadruple album.
• [38:00] His love for performing with other people.
• [39:04] Jacob gives us a glimpse of his music room.
• [40:50] His special performance of “You Got A Friend”
• [43:40] Up and coming online gigs we should watch out for.
• [45:05] Jacob’s inspiring words for teachers on encouraging students to be more and do more.

Links Mentioned

• Episode 100 – 100th Episode Special: Our Favourite Conversations From The Last 2 Years
• Episode 127 – John Schmidt from the Piano Guys
• Jacob Collier Website
• Jacob Collier YouTube

About our Guest Jacob Collier

It’s not often one encounters an imagination with the depth and proficiency of Jacob Collier’s. The London-based, 25-year-old is dubbed by many as one of the most innovative musicians of his generation. In 2012, Jacob’s self-made YouTube tutorials achieved legendary status in the music world, attracting the praise of such luminaries as Herbie Hanco*ck, David Crosby, Steve Vai and Quincy Jones, who manages Jacob to this day.

Jacob’s debut album, In My Room, which was crafted entirely in his room at home, and which, if you’re a Top Music Pro member, you can actually watch this interview with me and see inside his home studio; went on to win two Grammys.

His success has led to musical collaborations and fans including the likes of Coldplay, Ty Dolla $ign, Tori Kelly, Daniel Caesar, H.E.R., Charlie Puth, Kehlani, Jessie Reyes and Finneas to name a few.

In January 2018, Jacob began designing and creating a recording project on an unprecedented scale – a quadruple album called Djesse: 50 songs divided between four volumes with each operating within a separate musical universe of sound, style and genre. We unpacked and talked about this today, by the way.

Scattered across the four volumes are 30 collaborations from across every facet of the music world. Djesse Volumes 1 and 2 both have earned him a Grammy each, affirming that Jacob has never lost a Grammy in a category he’s been nominated in.

Show Sponsors for Jacob Collier show

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Thank you for tuning in!

In conclusion, there are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, and I’m grateful that you’ve chosen mine. Whether you’re at the gym, on the bike or in the car, I know that you and your students will get lots out of what you learn in the long run.

Just make sure you try out some of the ideas before they get lost in the business of your next lessons!

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