Hit Pop Duo A Great Big World Talk About Their New Single “Then There Were Sparks,” Upcoming EP and Tour Dates

The pop duo A Great Big World, which consists of Ian Axel and Chad King, have made a very positive impact over the past decade. Best known for their Grammy-winning hit single “Say Something,” the duo has released an impressive body of work with albums: Is There Anybody Out There? (released in 2014), When the Morning Comes (2015) and Particles (2021). They are also known for their collaborations and projects in films, television, theatre and animation.

Axel & King write and sing songs that are in a classic pop tradition, with beautiful melodies and thoughtful, descriptive lyrics. They write heartfelt, emotional ballads, and they also write energetic pop-rock songs. All of their songs reflect the duo’s distinctive personality and unique vision. And notably, they’ve also written songs for other artists such as Andrea Bocelli, Gwen Stefani. Ellie Goulding and others.

During the past two years, A Great Big World has worked on several new projects. In 2023, they wrote songs for a Japanese animated movie called The Imaginary, featuring the duet track “Nothing’s Impossible,” which they sang with hit artist Rachel Platten. Then in late 2024, they teamed up with popular vocal group Pentatonix on a new holiday song called “Christmastime Is Finally Here.”

Now with the arrival of 2025, the duo will be releasing a new EP called Then There Were Sparks, which includes the title cut & single, “Then There Were Sparks.” The EP also contains the new song “Go On,” plus three new, reimagined versions of their classic hit, “Say Something.”

“Then There Were Sparks” is a touching, uplifting song that starts softly, and then builds to a strong chorus. The key lyrics are, “Then there were sparks all around me, bursting right out of the dark. A light in my heart, there to ground me, right where the end meets the start. And then there were sparks.”

In addition to releasing their new EP, Axel & King have been writing songs for other artists. They wrote the graceful ballad “Fall on Me,” which became a popular duet for legendary singer Andrea Bocelli and his son, Matteo Bocelli. They also wrote two more songs recorded by Andrea Bocelli: “Holding On” (a duet with Gwen Stefani) and “Return to Love” (with Ellie Goulding). They’ve also collaborated and released music with Jason Mraz and Ingrid Michaelson.

On top of this, Axel & King are writing the musical adaptation for a show called Wonder, based on the novel by R.J. Palacio and the Lionsgate film.

This February, A Great Big World will be playing live shows again for the first time in years. They’re launching a mini-tour with four dates in the Northeast, playing at the City Winery in Philadelphia, Boston, Washington DC and New York City.

We are pleased to do this new interview with Ian Axel & Chad King of A Great Big World. They discuss their new EP Then There Were Sparks, their songs with Andrea Bocelli and other artists, and their upcoming live shows.

DK: In 2021, you released your last album, Particles. Can you talk about your musical journey and your projects since then?

Ian Axel: Since 2021, a lot of life has happened for both Chad and myself. We haven’t toured as much, and I think releasing music slowed down a bit for us. And we were working on other musical projects. But now we’re releasing new music and there’s going to be some shows again. This year feels like a rebirth of A Great Big World and what it means. We have our new EP and tour, we’ve been writing together, and we’ve also written songs for other artists.

DK: About a year ago you released the single “Nothing’s Impossible,” that you wrote for the Japanese animated movie, The Imaginary, and you sang this song with Rachel Platten. How did you get involved with this film project, and then sing this song with Rachel?

Axel: When Studio Ponoc was working on this film, they reached out to us and we fell in love with the team and the story. They were looking for a theme song, so we collaborated with them and we wrote “Nothing’s Impossible.” They wanted it to be a duet, and one of the names that they came up with was Rachel Platten, and we know Rachel. Many years ago, our first shows in New York were with Rachel. So it was funny to us that they mentioned her and we’re like, “Yes.” Then it came together, and we were lucky enough to go out to Japan and perform it in Tokyo with a huge orchestra while they screened the film, and it was one of my favorite experiences I’ve ever had.

DK: A few years ago, you wrote the beautiful song, “Fall on Me,” for Andrea Bocelli & his son, Matteo Bocelli. And you recently wrote a song, “Holding On,” which has been recorded by Andrea Bocelli & Gwen Stefani. Can you talk about writing songs for Andrea Bocelli?

Chad King: Just hearing you say that, I still can’t believe that we write songs for Andrea Bocelli. That’s a gift, a blessing. We are both so grateful that this has happened. And I think “Fall on Me” was such a wonderful experience, and it felt easy to navigate through. Then Andrea asked us for more music, and he recorded “Holding On” with Gwen Stefani.

Axel: It started with “Fall on Me” (released in 2018), and then we went to Tuscany (Italy) a couple years ago with a bunch of amazing songwriters from all over the world. The Bocellis hosted us there and we wrote with each other, and Andrea came into the session and it was an unbelievable experience. So we wrote a whole bunch of songs, and “Holding On” with Gwen Stefani was one of the songs that came out of that trip.

DK: You recently released a new holiday song, “Christmastime is Finally Here,” with (vocal group) Pentatonix. So how did you connect with Pentatonix and do that song?

King: We were fortunate to meet them and hang out with them, starting during the “Say Something” days. Then once we connected with them, we stayed in touch and we were like, “We should write a song,” and then we said, “We should write a Christmas song.” And then eventually it got here.

DK: You’ve just released your new single, “Then There Were Sparks,” which is from your upcoming EP. What inspired you to write that song?

Axel: In the beginning of this interview, I touched on the fact that we had been performing and touring less. I miss singing and performing live, and I feel like I was forgetting who that part of me was. So the longer that goes by, I get frightened every single time I sing, like right before I go to sing. And the longer the spaces between performances, I keep making excuses for why I can’t do this and whatever the excuse is. And there was one night where I was feeling so down about losing this part of myself, and I was lying on the ground on a carpet in my apartment. I was just staring at my ceiling and crying. And the piano was right there, and I started playing and I felt this connection again. I think that was the beginning of writing “Then There Were Sparks.”

DK: Can you talk in more detail about writing “Then There Were Sparks”?

King: For me, it started with Ian’s piano theme. That was the thing that moved me so much and when Ian kept playing it, I was like…there’s fireworks here. Then eventually that leads to what am I going through. What is the story I want to tell, and then how can Ian also relate to that? And for me, it feels like a new beginning…it’s right where the end meets the start, like a new beginning, I don’t know how to describe that, but the stuff that me and Ian were going through with my physical stuff, my health and with the touring piece, everything was changing and morphing. And this song and the sentiment landed perfectly there. It was like…Okay, I don’t know how this is going to work out, but it will and that’s it.

Axel: Ultimately, what connects me and Chad…I feel A Great Big World is a huge umbrella under which we can do lots of different things. We’re a writing team and the song is about creativity and creating something new out of nothing. And there’s magic that comes with that, because songwriting is still like a mysterious process to us. Every time we write a song, we don’t know how we’re gonna do it and we don’t know how we wrote the last one.

DK: On your new EP, I also like your song, “Go On.” Can you talk about writing that one?

Axel: It’s a song about losing someone you love and saying goodbye without believing in goodbyes, if that makes sense. It was a hard one for us to write. It’s also interesting because the song itself isn’t a long song. It’s not like a traditional song with a verse, pre-chorus, chorus and bridge. But it felt like the song didn’t need anything more. It said what it needed to say. It was a statement and it was a feeling and a moment and we recorded it that way.

DK: Also on your new EP, there are three, new reimagined versions of your hit, “Say Something.” Can you talk about these three versions, and which one is your favorite?

King: My favorite reimagined version of “Say Something” is the ukulele version, which is what we released for the 10-year anniversary of the song. That’s because it’s how we wrote the song originally. Me and Ian used to play that song in the park, and I would sit there with my notebook. We’d be sitting on a bench, and Ian would have his ukulele, and that’s the ukulele you hear.

Axel: It was probably 15 years ago that we wrote “Say Something.” Then with these reimagined versions, we were recording this new music, and it was coinciding with the 10-year anniversary of when we put that song out with Christina Aguilera. And we wanted to celebrate where we came from, and then use that as a way to move forward into a new path for us. We wanted to record a new version…if we had to do something completely different, what would it be? So we were like…Let’s take it off of the piano and put it on a guitar, and what does that do to it? So there’s one version that’s called “Say Something Revisited.” It’s on the guitar, and it’s has a brand new string arrangement from our friend, Rob Moose, who we think so highly of.

DK: I read that A Great Big World will sooon be playing a series of concerts in the Northeast. Can you talk about these new shows?

Axel: It’s the first time going back out there in awhile, and we’ll be playing a bunch of old songs, with new ones and some covers. We’re not going out with the full band; it’s going to be super stripped-down. I’m really excited. I’m excited to connect with people again in person and being able to share music in that way.

DK: Will you be expanding the tour to play other cities, such as Los Angeles?

Axel: I would love to…I think that’s the plan.  We’re starting in the Northeast, which is where we started playing live. I think the intention is to play and perform as much as possible.

DK: Now that you’re releasing your EP and touring again, do you have plans to record a new album?

Axel: We are writing and collecting songs at the moment, and it’s a work in progress. We’re talking about what we want to do next, what songs we want to record next. I’m open to it turning into a record of some sort.

King: You’re not the first person that has asked us that, and that’s definitely something we’re talking about.