All I Want: quick facts
- Band: Kodaline, from Swords in north Co. Dublin, fronted by Steve Garrigan.
- Released: 2012, on The Kodaline EP, then on their debut album In a Perfect World (2013).
- The video: a heartbreaking, beauty-and-the-beast style short film that went viral on YouTube.
- On TV: used in Grey’s Anatomy and many other shows.
- The end: in October 2025 the band announced they were splitting, with a final album and a 2026 farewell tour.
Before they were Kodaline, they were a group of school friends from Swords, Co. Dublin, trying their luck on a TV talent show. Then they wrote a quiet, broken-hearted song about wanting someone back, and the world started listening.
Here is All I Want, performed live, from Kodaline’s own channel.
Who are Kodaline?
Singer Steve Garrigan and guitarist Mark Prendergast grew up together in Swords and started making music as teenagers. Their first band appeared on RTÉ’s talent show You’re a Star in the mid-2000s. A few years later, with drummer Vinny May and bassist Jason Boland, they relaunched as Kodaline.
The song and the video
All I Want is about as simple as a song gets: piano, a cracked voice and a feeling everyone has had. The original music video told the story of a lonely man with a facial disfigurement who finds, and loses, someone special. It spread across YouTube and Facebook, and the band followed it with a second part continuing his story.
When the song was used in Grey’s Anatomy in 2013, a new wave of fans went looking for it, and it has turned up in TV shows and films ever since. It is now a staple at weddings, funerals and late-night singalongs.
From Swords to the world
Their debut album, In a Perfect World, went to number one in Ireland in 2013. Kodaline went on to tour the world, play huge Irish shows and release several more albums. In October 2025, after more than a decade together, they announced they would split, with one last album and a farewell tour in 2026.
Kodaline All I Want FAQ
Where are Kodaline from?
Swords, Co. Dublin.
Who sings All I Want?
Kodaline, with Steve Garrigan on lead vocals.
Was All I Want in Grey’s Anatomy?
Yes, in 2013, in season nine.
Have Kodaline split up?
In October 2025 they announced they would split after a final album and a 2026 farewell tour.
More Irish music
- Van Morrison’s Brown Eyed Girl
- The Script’s Hall of Fame
- Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars
- Hozier’s Take Me to Church
- You Raise Me Up: the Irish story behind the hit
- The best viral Irish videos of all time
Featured image: still from Kodaline’s official YouTube channel.
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