Chloe Stroll Talks Bloom in the Break and the Power of Healing Through Music
Chloe Stroll
Chloe Stroll is a Montréal-born singer-songwriter whose debut album Bloom in the Break pairs emotional honesty with cinematic pop and soulful vocals. A lifelong music lover who began singing at the piano as a child, Chloe returned to her artistic path in 2020 after studying business, writing more than 70 songs while her life evolved through marriage and motherhood. Recorded in renowned studios with Grammy-winning collaborators, Bloom in the Break explores resilience, love, and growth, capturing both pain and beauty with striking clarity. Poised and heartfelt, Chloe invites listeners into a world where vulnerability blooms into strength.
Many young artists rush into the industry, but you stepped back to attend business school, live life, then return. How do you think time has shaped the artist you are today?
I think it fully shaped me. The songs I was writing and the experience that you have when you’re 14 is far different than at 23–24. It gave me new perspectives. It completely changed my music.
You’ve written more than 70 songs for this project. How did you know which ones belonged on Bloom in the Break?
The way that I approached ‘Bloom in the Break’ was through my clear vision of what I wanted the songs to say and the message I wanted to convey to people listening. That was not an easy task with the songs, but it helped me really narrow things down, constantly coming back to, does this fit with my vision? Does this align with what I want listeners to feel when they hear this album and this project? I worked backwards, asking what I wanted my first album to encompass, and then chose the songs that fit.
You often write cryptically enough for listeners to find their own meaning. How do you balance vulnerability with emotional privacy?
With a lot of time. Sometimes it’s easier said than done. I do tend to go into a very narrow place, but I love cowriting! That’s one of the biggest reasons I love cowriting, because I find that someone can give you a different perspective. Or even when you have writer’s block and you keep spiraling in the same place, I’ll go and take two days or change where I’m writing and just try to come at it from a very different perspective. I think every song is different when you’re looking at it that way, and none are easier than the others.
Your music feels emotionally raw yet hopeful. What emotions or messages did you most want listeners to leave?
I really wanted my listeners to understand that no matter what they're going through, whether you stub your toe on the couch versus you're going through some hard personal struggles, you're not alone. Everyone’s issue or problem they're up against, or obstacle they're facing, is their own, and it’s still a wall and something you have to get past, and it’s very easy, especially today, to feel very alone. I wanted them to know that you have been hurt, that you're not going through it by yourself, and there are people out there who support you.
Nature imagery shows up throughout your work, water, hurricanes, and blooms. What draws you to those natural metaphors, and how do they help you express emotion in your songwriting?
Water specifically is a big one for me. It has always fascinated me. My parents used to say I was the Little Mermaid when I was five. I love swimming, I love the ocean, and I now live by the water. There’s something so cool that there’s this force that can bring life, that creates, but can also destroy. It brings death, it can bring storms, it can be tormenting, it can be terrifying, shallow, or deep. I always go back to that because it's such a big force of nature. It really is what makes the world go round. We are 80% water, so that’s something that I’m always drawn to. I think nature always has a course for us. I believe that there’s a path, not that we are destined to follow, but nature guides us towards, and it’s up to us to decide what we do with it. That’s why I have always been fascinated and intrigued by Mother Nature.
Were there certain songs that felt like emotional release points for you, tracks that helped you process or heal while writing them?
All of them, if I’m honest. Some are more obvious than others, like ‘You’re OK,’ definitely gave me a healing perspective with my grandmother. I zoned in on her, but I had a couple close friends and family that I lost, and that song helped me with all that. ‘A Lot to Give’ helped me in a totally different way. I was the 13–14-year-old in high school who was insecure, and she related to that. I was filled with anxiety. ‘A Lot to Give’ and ‘Prisoner,’ those songs really tapped into that for me and helped me heal differently with my younger self that didn’t realize needed healing, but it all came full circle to me. Writing helps me heal.
If your younger self could see this album, which song do you think would mean the most to her?
‘A Lot to Give’ would be a big one. I think ‘Home’ would be the one that would resonate the most with her. My younger self was, and it’s why this album is this way. I kind of wrote it with that girl in mind. The girl who loves, and I still do, to be clear, I haven't changed all that much. I love Disney. I’m very girly and feminine. I grew up singing Disney songs and performing in costumes and dreaming to be a Princess. I love romance. I still love romance. I couldn’t wait for Prince Charming to meet me. I think ‘Home’ is the song that encompasses everything in my dreams. When I wrote that, that was really what I felt. It was an oath to this little girl.
As you step into this era, what does success look like for you, chart positions, emotional connection, personal growth, or something else?
I would never say that I don’t want chart positions, because I think that’s what everyone wants. Truly, success for me is being able to change someone's day. For someone to listen to this album and really be like, wow, I really struggled and I felt really sad, and then I heard ‘Passenger Seat’ and it resonated with me, and it made me want to take another step forward, or I heard ‘Home’ and I'm feeling so much better, that's where I know I succeed. If people are responding to the album and not feeling alone, and feeling like they can take their next step forward and wake up and smile and be like, I got today, I’m going to do it, or they listen to ‘I Stood My Ground’ a couple of times in their room, I have succeeded in my mind.
Do you have a creative ritual when you're writing emotional material, journaling, voice notes, late nights?
I’m so not a late-night person anymore. I used to be. The thing with me is I keep a journal with me. I definitely voice note, or I pull up my notes, but it’s not a ritual, more like constantly remembering that when you have an idea and you're in the shower and you’re like, okay, I'll write it down in 5 minutes, it's gone! There’s no way you remember. Just get out of the shower, write it down, and come back. My phone is always near me for voice notes, but I transform them to a notebook that I keep with me at all times.
If you could perform this album start-to-finish anywhere in the world, where would it be?
Montréal, at the Bell Center, because I grew up in Montréal. I grew up going to concerts and seeing them there. That would be the most surreal moment, singing at that stage and seeing everyone.
