You may have heard us playing Joyful Future Take A Hold On Me by Cleimo – and we caught up with him to find out more about him and his music.
Tell us a little bit about your yourself?
My name is Clemens. I live with my family and two small kids in Augustdorf in Germany. I was born in Paderborn close by.
I’m 44 years old. I love to play piano and chess, listen to great music and sometimes read a book. I like to go outside and drive with my bike in the nature. I love my family a lot. It is the most important part of my life.
When did you first start to develop a passion for music?
My father was an entertainer in the region where I grew up in Holtheim, a small village close by. I was inspired by him a lot, when I was a small child.
He had a small accordion and a melodica. I used to play with it and tried to play some children songs first. Later in school my teacher recognised my singing voice.
After this I started to go to a music school. As I teenager I started to write my first songs, but I never had the equipment to record them professionally.
Music was always a very important part of my life, but I started to build up my home studio a few years ago only.
Which artists did you listen to while growing up?
I grew up in the 80s, so music from this period inspired me a lot.
I used to listen to all the great artists like Phil Collins, Genesis, Mike & The Mechanics, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Billy Joel, Roxette, Foreigner, Queen, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Nena, Herbert Grönemeyer, Westernhagen, H.R. Kunze, PUR, just to name a few.
As a teenager I fell in love with Jamiroquai music and listened to The Brand New Heavies and Funk from the 70s is still great to listen to for me nowadays. There are so many great artists, I cannot mention them all here.
How would you describe your music to someone who hasn’t heard you before?
Actually I wrote songs in many genres, but in the future, I want to write more songs like the style in “Joyful Future Take a Hold On Me”. Pop, Rock and Soul with funky influences. I write very powerful and emotional songs.
What music have you recorded and released to date?
I started to release my first tracks last year in 2020. Four singles so far, but there is still a lot more to come.
Which artists do you enjoy listening to at the moment – and do they influence your work?
At the moment I like to listen to Michael Patrick Kelly, Mark Foster, The Weeknd, Coldplay, Ace Marino, Jamiroquai, Matt Johnson, just to name a few. And yes they do influence my work.
Who would your dream collaboration be with?
My dream collaboration, I don’t know. I have just started to make my dream come true. Making music. I am a huge fan of Michael Patrick Kelly and Jamiroquai, a collaboration? I think, there is still left a lot to learn for me at the moment
What are your plans for the future?
When these Corona times are over, maybe I want to release more songs and bring them into public, meet some fans, and maybe play on small gigs? haha … I don’t know at the moment. I would be happy to get more fans and some publicity like to get my songs in the radio. This I have learned about the future. Just when you thought, you know what happens next, something different will happen and change all your plans! The secret is always to make the best of it!
Where can we find out more about you?
I have an official website at www.cleimo.com and you can also find me on YouTube, Facebook and Spotify too.
