Producer David Foster showcased the talents of his friends Loren Allred and Pia Toscano when he invited them to perform a live rendition of “Tell Him.” Originally sung by Céline Dion and Barbra Streisand, the romantic ballad has a challenging vocal arrangement, but Allred and Toscano delivered a powerful performance that captivated the audience and became a hit on YouTube.
At Foster’s concert special, “An Intimate Evening with David Foster,” Toscano opened the song with a passionate and soulful vocal. Allred followed with a delicate yet powerful lead, building up to a big chorus where both singers harmonized beautifully. The duet was a tall order, but Allred and Toscano exceeded expectations, doing justice to the 1997 hit.
Allred shared the performance on her YouTube channel, where it garnered 7.2 million views, making it her third most popular video. In the video description, she expressed her awe and gratitude, saying, “The first time I heard this song as a little girl, I was in absolute awe of the voices of Céline Dion and Barbra Streisand! If you had told me back then that I would be asked to perform it with David Foster and Pia Toscano, I truly wouldn’t have believed it. So honored to have shared the stage with them.”
Fans loved the performance, leaving comments such as “Loren and Pia really complemented each other’s rich tone. They slayed!” and “I just want to point out… this is live! No edits, no Auto-Tune – just pure talent. This was just incredible.” The most popular video on Allred’s YouTube channel features her singing “Never Enough” at the same David Foster special.
“Tell Him” was co-written by Linda Thompson, Walter Afanasieff, and David Foster in 1997. That year, Céline Dion performed Streisand’s song “I Finally Found Someone” at the Academy Awards, impressing Streisand and leading to their collaboration. Dion’s manager, René Angélil, reached out to Foster, who then created “Tell Him” for the duo. While the song was a minor hit in North America, it achieved Platinum status in Australia, the Netherlands, and Belgium, and went Gold in the UK and France.