HOW I GOT HERE
Jim Gillum is a singer/songwriter from Cincinnati (say that ten times fast!), Ohio, strumming a mix of original music and covers, everything from the Beatles to Buffet to Zak Brown. His original songs reflect that mix as well, with a healthy dose of country and classic rock like a generous plate of biscuits and gravy.
With his new album (“Strawberry Moon”) released on April 1, 2022, he is currently promoting a new video as well. The video is of the song "Siri Hears Me Talkin' in My Sleep," which has already seen the success of over 34,000 views on YouTube and over 55,000 views on IndiMusicTV.
As the son of a Church of Christ minister, he was raised on a steady diet of Gospel music and Hank Williams, Sr. As a teen, he discovered a taste for the Beatles, smuggling their records into his basement bedroom when mom wasn’t looking. He never lost his love of country music, playing in a high school “garage country band,” that included a repertoire of Merle Haggard as well as Neil Young. But it was right out of high school that he met a musician who would thoroughly change the course of his musical career, the late Rich Mullins, contemporary Christian recording artist and Dove award winner. Rich pulled Jim into his musical circle as he began to develop his own notoriety, performing in churches throughout the Midwest. On at least a couple of occasions, Jim was fortunate to have performed with Rich.
Jim went on to work as a solo performer in Cincinnati, where he developed his songwriting and stagecraft. Mixing in occasional humor in his shows (he still does an impersonation of a duet featuring Willie Nelson singing with Barney Fife), he performs regularly around the Greater Cincinnati area. He used his character voice talent in 1998 as the voice of the Lion as well as the Wizard in the production of “The Wizard of Oz,” performed by Frisch's Marionettes. Additionally, for over the past 20 years, he has been a successful music educator, mentoring several students along the way, teaching music in schools around Cincinnati.
He has previously released two albums recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, “Back Road Home” (1997), and “The Last Road” (1999). “Back Road Home” features an appearance by country music legend Steve Wariner, a 4 time Grammy Award winner who has charted over 50 singles in his own career. “The Last Road” features various award-winning musicians, including Grammy award-winning fiddle player Glen Duncan. Rick Bird of the Cincinnati Post wrote in 2000, “Gillum’s ‘The Last Road’ is a slickly produced project, recorded in Nashville, featuring several solid session players and Gillum’s own well-crafted contemporary Christian songwriting.”
Perhaps the crowning achievement of “The Last Road” was Jim’s own song “The Message of the Man,” written in honor of his late father, John Gillum, a song which placed 3rd in the Gospel Music Association’s “Music in the Rockies” in 2004.
From 2010-2015, he attended Berklee College of Music, where he won the Phil Spector award for songwriting in 2012. The result of his work at Berklee was the album, “Soak it Up,” which features a healthy dose of country and rock, along with the consistent thread of a faith that has sustained him and his music over the years. Kind of like biscuits and gravy.
Since Berklee, he has released a project titled, "Good News at Eleven," (2019), and has recently released, "Strawberry Moon: The Best of Jim Gillum" (2022). His latest album includes the song, "Siri Hears Me Talkin' in My Sleep," which has been turned into a video produced by Paul Bernstein.
Today, Jim is the spokesman/actor for the Mr. Moody book series, created by author Marty Walker of Lexington, Kentucky. The book series is designed to be an integral part of Marty's “Social/Emotional Learning” (SEL) curriculum intended for schools and for television. In late Summer and early Fall of 2023, he performed that role in the pilot episode, as well as for multiple commercials promoting the program. He is also involved in creating musical content for the program. The release of the videos has yet to be announced, as it is still in production. You can learn more about the program by going to mzmarty.com
He plans to continue performing, writing, and recording through 2024, as well as occasionally working with Mr. Moody. Stay tuned for more exciting news by signing up for the mailing list. You will stay informed as to where Jim is performing, where you might hear his songs (hint: Spotify!), and where you may see him on video!