Mikey Bloom: Mississauga rapper wins city anthem contest
Fifty years ago, Tommy Hunter wrote Mississauga’s first anthem. Now, Mikey Bloom leaves his mark in history as the city celebrates its 50th anniversary.
“This still feels surreal to me, to be selected for this. And I’m honoured,” said 24-year-old rapper and songwriter Mikey Bloom, winner of Mississauga’s 50th Anniversary Anthem Contest. The contest was created by the Mississauga Arts Council, Metalworks Studios, and SoundsUnite.
Bloom is a talented musician known for performing freestyles by rapping the words in the comments of his live streams. His unique style of interactive performance led him to grow his Instagram page to more than 26-thousand supporters. Bloom thanked everyone involved for their support at the January 16 press conference at Metalworks Studios. But Bloom’s creativity emanates from more than just his memorable song; he came in wearing a t-shirt he made himself honouring Hazel McCallion and Tommy Hunter (with a clever play using the Tommy Hilfiger logo).
“The city is what made me who I am, so there’s tons of teachers and role models throughout the community that helped me get here and I can’t say I did this alone. So, this song is really not just mine, it’s all of ours. I hope the city enjoys it,” remarked Bloom.
“We had some great, great submissions but Mikey Bloom’s, he just cranked it out of the park. It’s been absolutely phenomenal,” commented Stephen Dasko, Ward 1 Councillor, who first envisioned an anthem to celebrate Mississauga’s milestone. Councillor Dasko expressed his excitement for Mississauga’s brand-new song and stated how “music truly is the soundtrack of our life and so truly, from here on, we will recognize Mississauga as it turns 50 and going forward with Mikey Bloom’s brand-new song for Mississauga.”
One listen to Bloom’s new song makes it obvious why this one was the clear winner out of the approximately 20 submissions received: the upbeat, catchy track with a smooth mix of lyrics and clever rapping will surely stay bopping in your head long after listening to it. In the song, Bloom goes beyond the contest requirements (“to write an anthem that incorporates the word ‘Mississauga’ and celebrates community pride”) and lists various notable locations of Mississauga. Bloom recounts how he wanted to give each neighbourhood a shout-out, knowing how diverse the city truly is.
“The studio sessions were my favourite,” reflected Bloom, when asked by The Medium to share his favourite part of composing the anthem. The entire process was so extraordinary for Bloom that he “can’t pinpoint a specific moment” but appreciates all the hard work everyone at Metalworks Studios has done to bring his vision to life. Bloom says Gil Moore, Founder and CEO of Metalworks Studios, “Gives a space for artists to feel safe and to express themselves.”
“Everybody at Metalworks is really honoured to be part of this,” said Moore. “I love Mississauga and I love the fact that we’re involved in this musical project working on Mikey’s song. It was truly a team effort [from] the Arts Council, the culture department, the music arm of the city. Everyone was on board with this.” Moore then gave a shout-out to all the artists who competed and didn’t win, since there were a lot of good submissions, but reiterated how Bloom’s was “the five-star edition.”
You can listen to Bloom’s original song named “Mississauga Anthem” on all major streaming platforms.
Editor-in-Chief (Volume 51); Arts & Entertainment Editor (Volume 50) — Hannah recently completed her HBA in Communications, Culture, Information & Technology and Professional Writing & Communications with High Distinction. Hannah served as the Arts & Entertainment Editor for Vol. 50 and her previous publications include PWC’s official journal of creative non-fiction in Mindwaves Vol. 15 and research in Compass Vol. 9 and 10. She also served as an Associate Editor for Compass Vol. 9 and Vol. 10. In her spare time, Hannah runs her sticker shop The Aesthetics Studio and does freelance writing. You can connect with Hannah on LinkedIn.