Gaebel was born on 13 January 1975 in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany, into a musical family.

His younger brother Denis Gäbel plays tenor saxophone in the Tom Gaebel big band.

Colin Gäbel is a singer and guitarist in addition to being a TV presenter and reporter about computer games; he is a member of the rock band Mondo Kane.

Don't Wanna Dance spotlighted Gaebel expanding his style to pop and soul, with songs influenced by Motown.

In June 2010, Gaebel and his big band performed at the Sommerfest for the Federal President Christian Wulff held at Castle Bellevue in Berlin.