Timothy Bloom is a singer, songwriter and musician who got his professional start in the music industry in a major way. Once managed by William “Mickey” Stevensen — former head of A&R at Motown during its prime years in the 60’s — the North Carolina native had the opportunity to work with the legendary Smokey Robinson on his 2005 release “My World: The Definitive Collection.”
Bloom put his songwriting skills to the test as he co-wrote/produced two songs “My World” and “Fallin.” “It was like sitting down with an uncle getting all these amazing stories about his experience being at Motown and [seeing] how he writes effortlessly,” recalls Bloom about collaborating with Robinson. “It was wonderful. It was great. He had a lot of wisdom.”
Bloom says he learned a lot from Robinson just by being in his presence. “The advice was just him — watching him and how he did his thing and taking those bits and pieces and applying it to myself.”
Soon enough, Bloom signed a major record deal with super producer Timbaland’s Mosley Music Group in conjunction with Zone 4/Interscope. Through his deal, Bloom released an EP in 2011 called “The Budding Rose” to gain buzz before dropping his an album. The four-track masterpiece included Bloom’s debut single “Till The End Of Time (featuring V. Bozeman),” which got a lot of buzz, especially after he released its accompanying video.
The video features the two singers nude on a turntable as they sing the heartfelt ballad. Bloom says he came up with the concept for the video. “I just had a vision of V and I spinning around on this turntable and us looking like statues,” he says. “The day of the shoot, we were a little nervous at first but a little wine in your spirits gets you real comfortable, so it was cool.” What could have been an awkward moment for everyone on set turned out to be a beautiful moment. “There were people shedding tears because it was amazing energy around the whole room.”
Bloom soon began working on his debut album that would be released via Mosely Music Group/Zone 4/Interscope Records. However, due to unforeseen changes, Bloom decided to leave his record label. “With these labels there’s always merges happening and transitions,” says Bloom. “I was a part of those transitions.”
Although it was unfortunate that Bloom didn’t get to release his album on a major label, he wasn’t discouraged. He kept his head high. “I took all of the advice I had got in that period of time and continued to hone my skills to become a better business person, musician and thinker,” says Bloom. “I was like, ‘Okay let’s continue to work, build and create.”
Now as an independent artist Bloom is enjoying some of the perks. “I feel very comfortable as of right now because I am able to make my own decisions advised by my team around me who have worked with majors,” says Bloom. “To go back to another major [label] would be amazing but I’m okay right now. I feel good about everything.”
After spending two years of working his album, the Grammy award winner released his debut self-titled album in January 2014.
The album isn’t necessarily a conceptual album but a collection of Bloom’s experiences. “For these past few years, I’ve been trying to gather as much content from my experiences and be able to tell my story from them,” says Bloom. “So if it was conceptual, it would be my experiences and turning them into a story.”
Using his skills he developed over the years, Bloom wrote, composed and produced the majority of the songs on his album. “I’ve been doing it for so long I got used to doing everything myself,” explains Bloom. “Even when I record my vocals, it’s me recording because I get really nervous when people are in the room,” he laughs. “I’m introverted when it comes to that.”
The artwork for the album is a childhood picture of Bloom and has a significant meaning. “During the time I doing photo shoots for my album cover, a friend of mine’s son committed suicide,” reveals Bloom. “I thought about my childhood and I just dreamed of what I’m doing now. I called my mom and asked did she have pictures of me as a child. She sent me some and I chose that one.”
The album’s lead single “Stand In The Way (of My Love),” a piano-driven ballad about fighting for love, has been well-received by fans. Bloom says he and Charles Henshaw worked on the song in London with songwriter Ed Hardcourt. “He’s phenomenal,” Bloom says of Hardcourt. “We had a session with him. We he played us the track, I had the melody in my head.”
“Underneath My Skin,” another track on the album, is Bloom’s most personal song. “I was very vulnerable and you can even tell in my tone,” he says.
Though Bloom’s soulful album could be deemed as timeless, it wasn’t done on purpose. “When I create I don’t think about timeless music,” Bloom explains. “What I create comes from whatever I’m pulling down from whatever frequency it allows me to connect with. With my sound, I try to simplify things and really understand what my spirit is saying and put it on paper and record it.”
Timothy Bloom’s debut album is available now on iTunes. Get it here. Follow him on Twitter @TimothyBloom and like him on Facebook.com/TimothyBloom.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Since our interview with Timothy Bloom, he and his team have changed the cover art for his new album. The original artwork has been scrapped.
