Tom has had an illustrious career with number one hits, awards and more. In 2021, Tom Tikka won the ISSA award for International Male Emerging Artist Of The Year. He was also awarded four Josie-Award nominations as well as a nomination in the prestigious Hollywood Music In Media Awards. His new album, Better Man, is due out in 2022 under the Minds Behind the Music Record label. We thought we’d get to know him better...
If you had to name one song from any genre that really speaks to you, which one would it be and why?
“Rain” by Uriah Heep. It’s been in my Top 5 since I first heard it when I was fourteen. I adore it.
It’s a standout vocal performance by David Byron, a singer who sang many great lead vocals. Yet, there’s something about the way he sings “Rain”. It’s a slight miracle. I mean nobody sings that well. For any singer, listening to “Rain” is a humbling experience. Check out the bit where David laughs a little, right before the line “It’s kind of a shame” and the way he phrases the last line of the song “See what you’ve done to my life” – a truly superhuman performance.
“Rain” is also one of Ken Hensley’s best tunes. Just like David’s lead, the song itself is miraculous. It’s one of those bone-chilling melodies and lyrically, this is Ken Hensley at his finest. To anyone with any real-life experience, the following lines speak volumes:
Rain, rain, rain, in my tears
Measuring carefully my years
Shame, shame, shame, in my mind
See what you've done to my life
Upon listening to this as a kid, I never thought that I’d find myself measuring my own years, asking myself the burning question time and again, “Do I really have time for this?” Hensley very cleverly and accurately portrays the feeling you get when you stay with someone who doesn’t make you happy. You feel ashamed for being weak and staying.
Anyway, I love the track and I could go on and on but I won’t. Check it out, you won’t be sorry.
Are you a Mulder or Scully? Do you believe aliens have visited planet earth and if so what do you think they think about mankind?
I’m a Mulder. Mulder was the one who believed in supernatural things, right? I’m not an X-Files enthusiast.
My grandma was like that. She was very superstitious and also believed in extraterrestrial life. In a way, she instilled all that in me, the belief in spiritual beings and beyond. I’ve always sensed that there’s something behind the wall of consciousness, something more, another reality. It’s not anything I want to mess with but I know it’s there. I’ve had too many weird occurrences and unexplainable coincidences in my life to dismiss the existence of the spirit realm.
I have an example. My mom and dad were in Venice a long time ago, this was before I was born. They were sitting at the lobby of their hotel, drinking coffee and just happened to meet a Norwegian couple who were on their way to a Greek town called Igoumenitsa by ferry that afternoon. They really hit it off with them and the Norwegian couple decided to stay in Venice for one more night, there was another ferry to Igoumenitsa the next day. It turned out that this odd coincidence saved the Norwegian couple’s life as the ferry they were going to take sank due to a sudden storm and everybody aboard died. Sometimes life is all about serendipity … or is it?
The aliens … yeah, sure why not. Just because I haven’t seen them doesn’t mean they don’t exist. They’ve probably been here and most likely thought we’re crazy. I know I do. So many things people do make no sense. Why do we iron our clothes for instance? Who was it that decided they look better ironed? Whoever it was, I hate that guy! Our priorities are also strange. We’ve been to the moon and back but we haven’t figured out how to choose a perfect spouse or how to heal colic. Go figure.
What was the happiest day of your life and why?
I’ve had six happiest days of my life. I have six sons and every time one of them was born, it felt like the happiest day of my life. I love them all so much. There’s absolutely nothing I wouldn’t do for them. Don’t get me wrong, parenthood is hard work. But at the end of the day, it’s also the most rewarding thing in life. I understand it’s not for everyone but I wouldn’t change it for anything.
If “God” (whatever your idea is on that) were stood before you now, what one question would you ask him/her and why?
I’d like to know how my dad and grandparents are doing and if I’m ever going to see them again. I love them so much and miss them. It’d be comforting to know they’re waiting for me.
The thought of passing on is scary. I hate the idea of leaving everyone and everything I love behind. Regardless of all the hardships and disappointments, I still love life. I wouldn’t mind staying here forever to be honest. I know it’s impossible. Hence, I’d like to find out what’s awaiting.
As an expressive artist in the music industry, how does the state of the planet make you feel?
It makes me very worried because it seems that the masses don’t truly understand how acute and severe the condition of the planet is. The glaciers are melting and earth’s atmosphere is thinning. In reality, we are staring into the barrel of another ice age. Those of you who haven’t watched Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth should watch it. It paints an unnerving picture of what will happen in the next fifty years if nothing’s done.
My dream is that we’re all somehow able to come together to make a change but it’s obviously going to be very hard as long as folks can make fortunes by destroying the planet. I don’t know how to change that. I doubt anyone does.
Do you think as a person of some influence that there is a duty on us to help influence humanity for the better?
Absolutely. I’m not sure how big an impact what I say or do will have but I won’t stop trying.
I once asked a wise, old man I encountered on my travels why humans keep having the same issues one generation after another. His answer was, “As long as we suffer from selfishness and inflated egos, wars and suffering will never cease.” This was in Cyprus and I was very young but I still remember it like it was yesterday. This guy was in his seventies and he had seen it all: he had fought in the Second World War, he’d been married four times, lost his kid to cancer and he had travelled the world extensively. Having that random conversation with him that day was a turning point in my life. What he was saying transcended, I became aware of how difficult living a good life truly is. He introduced me to Socrates’ writings quoting him more than a few times. The quote that for some reason still stays with me is the humorous:
By all means, marry. If you get a good wife, you will be happy. If you get a bad one, you will be a philosopher.
I know my grandad Torbjörn would have agreed.
If you were stood before the leaders of the world, what would you say to them?
Put an end to the unjust war in Ukraine and while you’re at it, stop wars altogether.
Having said that, it’s easy for us to demonstrate and be in the opposition, isn’t it? I watched an interview of George W. Bush recently where he talked about his years as the president of the United States. He said that the most frustrating thing about being in office was the fact that there was a reality to the job. Solving problems wasn’t as easy as one might think. By solving one problem you’re usually creating two new ones. I believe it. It’s the same thing with everything. A kid who wants to be a movie star does not know about the challenges of that career, he only sees the fancy cars and luxurious houses. So, he says to everyone, “I want to be a movie star. Then my life is perfect.”
All I’m saying is that if wars and all sorts of other crimes against humanity were easy to solve, we would have most likely already solved them. My grandma used to say, “Nothing’s ever perfect because people are flawed.” I think she was probably right.
And finally my last question is in fact one written by Freddie Mercury in the song “Is This the World We Created”?
Yeah, it is. This is what we wanted. I know most people reading this will think that I’m nuts saying that but another thing I was told as a kid was that every choice you ever make comes at a cost. This might not be the world we planned to create but it sure as hell got created while we were busy stroking our egos and running after things that facilitated the creation of the current reality. I’m no better. I could have done more and I could have been more tuned into what’s happening far earlier. The problem for all of us is that doing what’s right for the world and others is usually much more challenging than doing what’s right for you. This is the reason why we are where we are. Can you take a break from recycling if you are tired and your kid has the stomach flu? This is the quandary.
Another thing is that so much of what is wrong with the world and humanity can be traced back to privileged people exploiting either their less fortunate brothers and sisters or planet earth itself. It’s as simple as that. And I get it. Nobody wants to leave an awesome party, right? It’s just that some parties, like burning fossil fuels, will have to come to an end because they are destroying our home, the Earth. It’s hard to continue the party if the venue has been blown up.
Yet, it’s all very well to be on a high horse and explain how different the world would be if I were the leader of it. The reality is that I have no idea what I would do, nobody does. Until you are in that position you can’t really tell. I’d like to believe that I’d make the right decisions but I don’t want to be arrogant or big headed and just assume that it’d be as simple as ABC because it isn’t.
Find out more about Tom here https://www.tomtikka.com
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