After dedicating many years to the viola, which he began in 1974, Kim Mills
spent the 1980's performing in several musicals at local dinner theaters,
and joined the University of Maryland's Gospel Choir in College Park Maryland.
In 2001, he joined the Elliston Music Studio for Jazz Studies, directed
by Ron Elliston and Ronnie Wells Elliston. For the past 3 years, Kim has
been a co-stage performer at the FMJS East Coast Jazz Festival, in Rockville,
Maryland, and has appeared at Twins Lounge with such notable Jazz musicians
as Ron Elliston, Wes Biles, DeAndrey Howard, James King, and the late Ricky
Loza. Influenced by trips to Europe and Latin America, he has acquired
an international love of music and enjoys singing in French, Spanish, and
Portuguese.
In February 2005, Kim released a Jazz vocals CD, The Ruby and The Pearl, under
the Jazz Karma Records label. The Ruby and The Pearl features a rhythm section
of world-class musicians: Ron Elliston on piano, James King on bass, Mike
Smith, on drums, and Fred Foss on flute. This collection of smooth swings,
bossas, and ballads has been described as "...sexy, relaxing,
hypnotic..."
A native Marylander, Kim Mills is originally from Mitchellville, where
his family still resides. Having received a B.S. in Business Management
and Administration from the University of Maryland at College Park and
an M.Ed. in Elementary Education from Howard University, he has worked
as a Management Analyst for the US Department of the Treasury, an education
consultant, and presently works as an elementary teacher.
On July 21st, 2007 Kim was honored as the 1st place winner of the inaugural
Cab Calloway Vocal Competition, part of Baltimore, Maryland's Artscape
2007! As the winner, he performed at the Meyerhoff
Symphony Hall, sharing the stage with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
In October of
2008, Kim embarked on his first international tour. Invited to Russia by the
Alexey Cheremizov Quartet, Kim performed to ‘standing room
only’ crowds in the Siberian region as well as St. Petersburg and surrounding
cities. The hallmark of the tour was a performance in St. Petersburg’s prestigious Jazz Philharmonic Hall.
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