ON a regular work day, amid the hustle and bustle of KL, tired salarymen in a cosy speakeasy jazz bar were serenaded by a voice fated to echo through generations.
Timur Flores, a Malaysian-Swiss singer-songwriter, has been steadily making her name in the music industry and is not slowing down anytime soon.
Between fresh releases and writing new music, Timur sat down with theSun for a little chat about songwriting, music production and life.
Has music always been a part of your life?
It was always a big part of my life. We always had music playing in the house and my dad loved music. Every summer, he would throw a party for the people he worked with — he was in the watch industry. He would (always) have a band playing. My parents also encouraged me and my siblings to play an instrument. So, there was always music in our lives and I was always singing at the same time too.
Me and my siblings made a little band and we would sing at our parents’ parties. However, I did not truly consider music as a career until later on in life. It was just something fun that I enjoyed doing, but I did not consider it a viable career path until I got to university.
At the time, it made sense to pursue engineering because I was naturally good at science and mathematics. But, in university, I realised I was not passionate about those subjects.
Even when I started working as an engineer, my heart was never in it. But, one thing I was consistently good at doing was singing. So, when I came back to Malaysia, I worked in the bank for a little bit before I decided to try and do what I wanted to do.
Who were your musical mentors or idols?
Shakira. She’s amazing — when I was a kid, I wanted to be like her. We used to spend our summers in Switzerland because that is where my dad is from. In Switzerland, television shows were in French and I do not speak the language. So, our channel options were limited. After 7pm, the channel we enjoyed watching was MTV. My brother, sister and I watched music videos most of the time.
It did not play many different songs, so I watched Shakira’s Whenever, Whenever, Whenever a lot. She was the first artiste that I went “Oh my god! I love your music”. I had her CDs — she got me into listening to albums as well.
She also has a song called Timor. I have never heard my name in a song before! I know she was referencing East Timor, but my name is in a song and this is my jam. I have always loved her work. It is fantastic that she sings and dances. But then, as I mentioned earlier, my dad was the one who got me into music and listening to different genres as well.
You come from a beautiful mix of cultures (Western and Southeast Asia), how does that give you an edge when producing music?
I wish I was more exposed to certain parts of my own culture but I grew up in KL. So, I do not know the Sarawakian culture as well as I should, because it is where my mum grew up.
My parents put me in a Taiwanese school. So, my classes were all in Mandarin for the first few years of my life. Although, I did not grow up listening to as much Chinese music in general as it was not the kind of music my mum was into, but it is something I have chosen to explore as I got older.
It was my dad who helped me broaden my listening tastes. Listening to different genres inspires me. You can draw so much inspiration from various cultures and it is wonderful! So, having a multicultural background just means you are more open to learning about different things.
