Bloom Twins: The Iconic Duo
The Bloom Twins sat with us at Tilted and opened up about their experience as artists, working as twins, and more. They both bring the best out of each other and bring different talents to the table. Music, style, fashion…they do it all! Working as a team, always, they have also worked with other artists such as Benny Benassi, Guy Gerber, Jan Blomqvist, Diplo, Sofi Tukker, to name a few! Keep reading it and enjoy !
What is it like working with your twin?
Sonya: People might think that working with a twin could, at times, feel complicated or competitive, but in reality it’s incredibly easy, as we’re like two sides of the same coin – so it always feels to us as though we’re completing each other to make a whole. In many ways we are polar opposites, with very different tastes, influences, and perspectives on the world and music, hence we are the perfect work duo.
Anya: It’s great working with my twin. I know that I can trust her implicitly, and that she will always be dead honest about what she likes or hates in a track. No filter. Sometimes we want to kill each other (which I think is pretty healthy), but most of the time we want to support each other and be the best versions of ourselves we can be.
Have you girls always known you wanted to get into singing? What inspired you to pursue a career in the entertainment industry?
S: Our passion for music was always there, and I’m sure that in fact we had our first exposure to it when the two of us were still in our Mom’s tummy. Our parents met in a band; hence music was always part of our lives, even before we were born.
Growing up we weren’t really thinking we’d form a band, even though we’d studied classical music all through our schooling and had mastered a number of different instruments by the time we were in our early teens. Anya was planning to go to university to study mathematics, and I was working towards becoming an opera singer; but before we got too far down either of those particular tracks we met one of our managers who saw something in us that was very raw, and she inspired us to follow a dream that perhaps we’d had but that we thought was too far out of reach at the time. People always say that maths and music go together – and I think that’s true.
A: Actually, I thought about becoming a mathematician, but we’d been really into music, since we were five years old. We attended music school every single day, played piano, and our Mum taught us to sing. I don’t have a single regret about changing my initial plan and moving to London to pursue a music career. In fact, it was the best decision we’ve ever made!
Share with us your journey until now. When faced with obstacles, how do you overcome them?
S: We moved to London at the age of 16, with zero English but 100% passion. People didn’t really take us seriously in the beginning – maybe because we were so young (even for our age), maybe because we couldn’t understand most of what people were saying to us, or maybe because we got into modeling when we first arrived in order to make ends meet. At first, a lot of people categorized us as models that could sing, rather than singer-songwriters who were trying to pay the rent. We were worried that this would be detrimental to our credibility in the long run, so for a while we gave that up and started working at a local coffee shop. I have to say, it wasn’t quite what we had pictured when we moved to London – but it certainly helped integrate us into local life.
Moving from a small town in Ukraine to what we thought was the capital of music had such an exciting ring to it that before we’d even done anything we felt that we’d made it on some level. But for sure it wasn’t all plain sailing – and there were a myriad of obstacles along the way. Probably the first major one was our debut performance in London at a famous blues bar. We had sweet-talked our way in. It was an iconic place, where incredible blues singers and performers collaborated and improvised. It was packed. Hot and sweaty, and filled with expectation. We were meant to sing two songs, but we didn’t last for more than one. We were beyond terrible! Looking back, we are grateful for that experience because it was so traumatic at the time, it pushed us to really get it together, and through a lot of long hours and hard work, within two years we’d gone from that ghastly experience to playing on some of the biggest stages in the world with Duran Duran, Nile Rodgers and CHIC, Seal, and LP. I’m not sure if we’d have made that transition as quickly was it not for our disastrous first night. And maybe we wouldn’t have been invited to take part in the UNICEF #imagine campaign alongside Katy Perry, will.i.am, David Guetta and Yoko Ono, to raise awareness around the human rights of children.
I think for most people the lockdown and this period during which Corona was more than just a beer, has been and still is, a massive obstacle. For us, right before the pandemic, we had reached a point where we were finally becoming financially independent. Things had really started to happen and, for the first time, we were actually able to provide for ourselves and invest in our own careers. And then COVID 19 took hold and for most musicians, this has been pretty catastrophic. But giving up wasn’t an option for us – so we made a pact with each other that we would use the time wisely.
In many ways, this restricting moment felt very liberating. We didn’t need to fly anywhere for writing sessions but could just do them from our bedroom. We started DM’ing our heroes, the icons we had always wanted to work with. And guess what… some of them replied, including the legendary Benny Benassi. What a dream come true. A dance music superstar who not only replied but also suggested collaborating on our next single: #DayDream.
The lesson… Keep on dreaming guys, or maybe I should say ‘Day Dreaming’ because anything is possible and if you work on them with passion and determination, dreams really do come true. No matter what people say, you can do it. You just have to want it badly enough.
A: It wasn’t easy for us moving to London when we did. We couldn’t speak English; had never written a song; had never done anything that you would consider ‘responsible’ on our own; didn’t know how to cook, and had never had a proper job. So jumping into an adult life was challenging, and pretty quickly we needed to grow a bit of a thicker skin. But within the first two or three months we were already working, speaking English, and writing songs. Obstacles can make you feel insecure to start with, but as soon as you overcome them, they build confidence. And in order to triumph over them you gotta switch your brain off, when it says you’re not good enough, and think about what you can do to get closer to your goals. Just one step at a time!
Breathe in and power through, be kind to each other, and believe in yourself.
How do you girls resolve any disagreement on lyrics/music?
S: Luckily, from the start we found ourselves gravitating towards different things, hence the compromise is sort of staying out of what the other one is doing (just kidding)!! Anya is into production and I sure am the number one fan of her dark electronic beats. I, on the other hand, am into lyrics and melodies that most of the time strongly depends on what’s going on with the instrumentals. So we complement each other greatly.
Who plays what role in this duo?
S: The last question leads into this beautifully, but I guess I will take another approach here…
I am her big sis and I guess I’m a ‘go-getter’. I reach out as much as I can and my sis is definitely the cool, fun one. When I get a bit too serious she is there to funk it up.
A: Things that I mentioned above. But also, Sonya loves styling and finding incredible pieces. She could style anyone, and they would look sick. I’m the ‘tech’ person out of the two of us. If there is an issue with anything, I am the one sitting for three hours to figure out how it works or how I can fix it.
Growing up, what was your family dynamic like? Do you girls recall a moment that had a strong impact on both go you?
S: Our family dynamic was all about hard work. We were put into music school together at the age of five. Anya and I studied piano, flute, the history of classical music, vocal and choir, and our Dad put us into mathematics-influenced classes. It wasn’t always what we wanted to do but it did turn our instruments into the toys we liked to play with, as we just didn’t have any time for dolls.
A: Our parents were in a band, and it’s something that taught us creativity, music and, more generally, how to express yourself creatively in any form. Our Mum is an incredible singer, vocal teacher, and artist. Her drawings were impeccable. Our Dad plays flute, guitar, a bit of drums and he produces music as well. Over time, we learnt that whenever we want to experiment with something that’s outside the box and very different to what we usually do – we have to give it a try. Sonya is great at styling, I fell in love with acting, and taking pictures. Don’t let anyone put you in a box and say that you’re only gonna be good at one thing. You can be anything you want, if you put the hours in.
Tell us more about each of your personalities. In what ways are you the same? different? (give plenty of detail from fashion sense, to music taste, personalities, hobbies, etc).
S: I am more of the loud one, be it in the clothing I wear, the way I speak or even the way I write; and Anya is the cool one. I was heavily into fashion for as long as I can remember. I was always borrowing my Dad’s ties and putting them with Mom’s shirt and oversized jeans, and would just spend hours in front of a mirror planning my entry into school the next day. I wanted it to be fire! I love bands that link fashion with music, such as the Sex Pistols, who made the whole thing into one great package with the help of Vivienne Westwood. Such a genius talent. That really resonates with me. I love the loudness and shapes of McQueen, and the joyfulness of Moschino, or the quirkiness of Gucci. Anya is more of a 50 shades of black clothing sorta girl. Oversized suits are where we meet.
My favorite artists are not only those who have the best songs but also those who really have something to say. David Bowie, I could watch for days, Amy Winehouse is so emotional that her lyrics give me goosebumps every time I hear them. The Velvet Underground created an interesting story with Andy Warhol and were also very revolutionary in terms of their music. And of course it’s hard to talk about Daft Punk without tears in my eyes now.
A: I love obsessing about little details. All things in my house have to make sense. I always declutter clothes, I love a minimalistic approach to life. If things don’t bring joy, you gotta get rid of it. Sonya on the other hand loves all of her clothes and will never get rid of a single piece! Sometimes I would have panic attacks when I would walk in her closet, haha. SO MUCH STUFF. In music it’s the same – she has tons of different ideas, that she will barely remember after she sings them. And I always hear precise ideas of what I wanna do with a track.
What is the story behind “Daydream”? What was your favourite part about creating?
A: Our favourite part was having Benny Benassi step in and breathe a very different life into this song that we always liked but just couldn’t dance to. It was so refreshing to hear how different the song could sound but also how right it felt.
Who are artists you have worked with that you love?
S: We have been fortunate to work with some incredible artists: Duran Duran, Benny Benassi, Guy Gerber, Jan Blomqvist, Diplo, Ben Bohmer, Sofi Tukker, Eli Brown, Purple Disco Machine, and Elderbrook – many of whom we connected with via DM this quarantine. How wild!!!
Future plans for 2021?
More hugs hopefully and future shows!!!! We also have a few other releases already in the works – including our collaboration with Jan Blomqvist and Guy Gerber and a great remix from Sofi Tukker. Those will be the next ones out the gate. We cannot wait to share the songs and future collaborations we’ve got cooking for you.
@tilted.style
Talent Bloom Twins @bloomtwins
First Photo Luke Nugent @lukenugentphotography
Next Two Photos Linda Cooper
Last Photos Luke Nugent @lukenugentphotography
Interview by Alexandra Bonnet @alexbonnetwrites