Casey Abrams facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Casey Abrams
Casey Abrams performing in 2016
Background information
Born	(1991-02-12) February 12, 1991 (age 34) Austin, Texas, U.S.
Origin	Idyllwild, California
Genres	Jazz, rock, blues
Occupation(s)	Musician, singer, songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, double bass, piano, melodica
Years active	2011–present
Labels	19, Concord Records, Chesky Records

Casey Abrams (born February 12, 1991) is an American musician from Idyllwild, California. He became famous after finishing in sixth place on the tenth season of American Idol. His first album, called Casey Abrams, came out in 2012. He has released several other albums since then, including Tales from the Gingerbread House in 2016.

Early Life and Music Journey

Casey Abrams was born in Austin, Texas, on February 12, 1991. His parents are Pam Pierce and Ira Abrams. He grew up in a family with different religious backgrounds. Casey spent his early childhood in Illinois, attending McKenzie Elementary School in Wilmette.

Later, Casey moved to California. He went to Idyllwild Arts Academy in Idyllwild, where his dad taught film production. At this school, Casey learned to play the classical bass and how to improvise music. He also joined jazz groups. This helped him learn a lot about music history, piano, and how to write music for movies.

After finishing school in 2009, Casey studied music at the University of Colorado in Boulder. Before joining American Idol, he also worked as a counselor at a film camp.

Casey has a health condition called ulcerative colitis. This is a disease that affects the colon. Sometimes, it made him very sick and he needed to go to the hospital, even while he was on American Idol.

Some of the musicians who inspired Casey include Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, Oscar Peterson, and James Taylor. He also looked up to Marshall Hawkins, who led the jazz department at his arts academy.

Casey Abrams on American Idol

Auditions and Early Rounds

Casey Abrams tried out for the tenth season of American Idol in Austin, Texas. He made it into the Top 24 semi-finalists. Just two days before he was supposed to perform, he got very sick with stomach pains and had to go to the hospital. Luckily, he felt well enough to perform on the show. He was one of the five male singers who got enough votes to move on to the Top 13. However, he missed the Top 13 results show because he was still unwell.

The Judges' Save and Elimination

Later in the competition, Casey received the fewest votes during the Top 11 show. But the judges decided to use their special "save" power on him! They stopped his performance halfway through to tell him he was safe. This was only the third time in American Idol history that the judges had used their save.

Casey was finally eliminated from the competition on April 28, 2011. He finished in sixth place. For his last performance, he sang "I Put a Spell on You" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins. He had sung this song before in the semi-finals. During this performance, he even kissed some audience members and rolled onto the stage!

After the season ended, Casey performed "Fat Bottomed Girls" with actor Jack Black on the American Idol finale show on May 25, 2011.

Performances and Results Table

This table shows the songs Casey Abrams performed and how he did during his time on American Idol:

• Casey received the lowest number of votes. However, the judges used their one "save" of the season to keep him in the competition. This meant two people were eliminated the following week instead.
• Because the judges saved Casey, the Top 11 contestants stayed the same for another week.

After American Idol

Abrams in concert

After American Idol, Casey Abrams appeared on many TV shows. These included The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Live with Regis and Kelly, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. He also joined the American Idols LIVE! Tour 2011, performing in cities across the U.S. and even in the Philippines.

In 2011, Casey became a spokesperson for a campaign called IBD Icons. This campaign aimed to teach people about inflammatory bowel disease, which is a group of conditions that includes ulcerative colitis.

Casey also recorded a holiday song called "Baby, It's Cold Outside" with fellow American Idol contestant Haley Reinhart in November 2011. They even made a music video for it.

In January 2012, Casey signed with Concord Music Group, a jazz record label. His first album, Casey Abrams, was released on June 26, 2012. Famous people like Randy Jackson helped produce it. The first song from the album, "Get Out," came out on June 5, 2012.

Casey has also appeared in several videos with Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox. He even toured with them in Europe.

In 2015, Casey started working on his second album, an EP called Tales from the Gingerbread House. He used a website called PledgeMusic to get fans to help fund the album. This EP has five songs, including "Cougartown" and "Never Knew What Love Can Do," which features Haley Reinhart.

In 2018, Casey released his second full-length album, Put a Spell on You. The title song is the same one he sang for his final performance on American Idol. This album was recorded very quickly, in just two days! It reached #5 on the Billboard Jazz Charts.

In 2019, Casey released another album called Jazz. This album showed his strong return to his jazz roots. It included classic jazz songs like "I've Got the World on a String." Casey recorded this album in a former church, which he said had "magic" acoustics. Jazz debuted at #2 on the Billboard Jazz Charts.

Music Albums and Songs

Studio Albums

Extended Plays (EPs)

Live Albums

Singles

Collaborations

Music Videos

See also

• List of people diagnosed with ulcerative colitis