Italy's Own Acoustic Powerhouse: Q&A w/ Daudia
Located in Italy’s Campania region, Daudia is the artistic partnership of Italian multi-instrumentalists and vocalists Davide and Claudia. Rooted in their harmonies and compatibility as a duo, Daudia have grown and fostered a broadly international following with appearances on The X Factor UK, The X Factor Romania, Italy’s The Winner Is, and their own increasingly popular YouTube channel. We were first drawn to Daudia for their eclectic acoustic arrangements, which often feature ukulele at the forefront. As of 2020, we were proud to welcome Daudia aboard as our first official Kala Artists in Italy!
With the Spring release of their new album ‘All Around the Pop,’ an ambitious 21 track LP, we caught up with the duo to hear a bit more about their journey so far and their perspective on the ukulele:
How long have you two -- Davide and Claudia -- been performing together? And when did you become Daudia?
We met by chance in late 2016, during a live show. As we started singing and playing together, we immediately realized we had amazing chemistry onstage so we decided to start this journey. Daudia is the fusion of our names, Davide and Claudia, and it also represents our partnership in music and life.
Your original cover of "Jerusalema" from the summer of 2020 really blew up -- it has now topped 1 million views! What has stood out most about that experience for you as musicians?
We didn’t expect that cover song to be so successful! We also topped 1 million streams on Spotify and it’s a goal we’ve always wanted to achieve. As musicians, we think that experience gave us the chance to find out our style. Since we recorded that acoustic version of “Jerusalema,” we couldn’t help playing ukulele and other acoustic instruments in every production of ours and we focused on that sound for the following songs and videos.
You two seem to make a point to shoot acoustic performances in the most gorgeous locations ever. Who scouts those out and what are the logistics like for your outdoor video shoots?
We love making videos outdoors in beautiful locations! Since the COVID-19 pandemic affected our lives and musical performances, we thought it was a great idea to let people discover beautiful Italian landscapes by watching our videos. We both usually search for landscapes on the internet and then we go! Some places are really dangerous because they’re in wild nature, sometimes the temperature is below 0 degrees, or we find it hard to get there but for us it’s like a challenge now and it’s so exciting!
Daudia is based in Italy, but your audience seems to be remarkably international and widespread. From what countries do you see the greatest interest and response to your music?
Yes, we’re Italian and based in Italy, but we’re so happy to know that our followers are from all over Europe, South Africa, U.S.A. and South America, especially Argentina.
During the last year, we’ve had a great response from France most of all.
What has drawn you two to the ukulele, and other acoustic instruments like U•BASS®, Cajón, and Guitarlele?
When we started playing the ukulele 2 years ago, we discovered a new world! We had never played it before and we were so surprised to know it was in perfect harmony with our style. But that’s not all...when we also approached Kala’s U•BASS, guitarlele and more varieties of ukuleles, we literally fell in love!
How would you describe the community surrounding the ukulele in Italy compared to other countries?
We think in Italy, the ukulele is an underrated instrument. People think it’s just a small guitar or a guitar for children. We’re trying to create a community for people to get to know this amazing instrument better, because it’s unique. Internationally, ukulele is more “famous” and a lot of people know the different types and models of it.
Tell us a bit about your new album All Around the Pop, and how it came to be.
After posting a lot of cover songs on our social media, a music label contacted us asking us to create the project. All Around the Pop is an album that contains the top pop hits of the decade, re-arranged by us in acoustic versions. We played every instrument you hear in the album, and we used U•BASS, several sizes of ukuleles, guitarlele, acoustic guitar, piano and cajòn to record it. It was amazing to experiment with new sounds and build the arrangements day by day.
How did you go about selecting what instruments to use in recording this album?
We wanted a delicate, intimate and acoustic sound on this album; recording it we imagined people listening to our album while having a ride, traveling or spending an evening chilling with friends, so it was easy for us to go for ukuleles, guitarlele, and so on.
What is one song from All Around the Pop that you think every ukulele player should listen to?
One of our favorites is “All About That Bass,” which is played with tenor ukulele and U•BASS. That’s a perfect match! Ukulele players could also appreciate “Dance Monkey” and “Senorita,” played with different types of ukulele (concert and soprano).
What should we expect to see from Daudia in the near future?
We’re working on some new original pop country songs that we’re planning to release next fall. Before that, we’ll probably release another cover songs album with some top hits of all time 😊
You can keep up with the latest creations from Daudia by visiting their website, and following them on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
In May, Daudia teamed up with Kala to giveaway a Champagne Pink Sparkle Ukulele on their Instagram to one lucky winner. Be sure to follow our social media accounts for new giveaway announcements throughout the year!
