The British and Jamaican jazz pianist reflects on his long journey to becoming a musician confident in his voice and abilities.
AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
Finding your voice can be a lifelong battle, and for musicians also trying to find a unique sound that suits them, the struggle can leave you feeling like an impostor. That’s how musician Ashley Henry explains it.
RASCOE: Finding your voice can be a lifelong battle, and for musicians also trying to find a unique sound that suits them, the struggle can leave you feeling like an impostor. That’s how musician Ashley Henry explains it.
ASHLEY HENRY: Just the whole idea of being an artist sometimes, especially when I was younger, you know, I mean, it can sometimes feel a bit out of reach or something that’s not possible.
RASCOE: But as the British and Jamaican jazz pianist says, the more you trust the process, you discover something great within yourself.
RASCOE: But as the British and Jamaican jazz pianist says, the more you trust the process, you discover something great within yourself.
HENRY: There’s a part of you eventually that just goes, yes, it is possible, and you are doing it right now, you know? And it’s just that game of, like, you know, just accepting it and embodying it and trusting that side of you.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “TAKE IT HIGHER”)
HENRY: (Singing) Let’s get away and take it higher.
RASCOE: Ashley Henry’s track “Take It Higher” is all about connecting with yourself and expressing your voice. But that doesn’t mean you’re sui generis. Henry can trace his voice to his father’s stereo.
RASCOE: Ashley Henry’s track “Take It Higher” is all about connecting with yourself and expressing your voice. But that doesn’t mean you’re sui generis. Henry can trace his voice to his father’s stereo.
HENRY: I grew up with, like, such a huge record collection, like, because my dad owned a sound system, and we lived in a very enclosed community, which was predominantly, you know, Afro Caribbean. So a lot of the Jamaican records and even some of the records from Stateside – such amazing music. So it’s like in my head, from a young kid, it’s just like, damn, that’s the entry level, if you want to be an artist, whether it was like Dennis Brown or like Stevie Wonder or Earth Wind and Fire, or – you know what I mean? Like, all these great musicians and then, kind of just picking up the sleeve as like a little kid and like, really holding it and looking at it, and even just the artwork can kind of just transport you into a whole ‘nother planet.
(SOUNDBITE OF ASHLEY HENRY SONG, “TAKE IT HIGHER”)
HENRY: I’m just a music nerd, you know. I just love music, you know what I mean? And sometimes that can be a good thing, but also not a good thing if you’re an artist and actually doing music yourself, ’cause sometimes that impostor syndrome can come through – for me, anyway. It’s like a double-edged sword. “Take It Higher” definitely has that inspiration from the kind of Mizell Brothers era – Donald Byrd, all the George Benson stuff, that ’70s sound. A lot of that stuff was like the backbone of, like, my childhood, you know? And in a lot of ways, it’s very vulnerable for me to kind of show that side of me because I’ve never released a track like this before. So having this track as a part of my album, like, really means the world to me because it’s really, like an entry point into my sonic world. Sometimes, life can trick us into feel and limited. So, like, “Take It Higher” is about tapping into that world beyond and kind of explores the power of music to transport us together collectively, like, despite everything that’s going on.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “TAKE IT HIGHER”)
HENRY: (Singing) Let’s get away and take it higher.
The place where like, rest, respect, joy, and childlike creativity is the norm and where we’re all thriving. So that’s where “Take It Higher” comes from. And I just remember the song just came to me, and there was no hesitation. I kind of just allowed it to just come out.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, “TAKE IT HIGHER”)
HENRY: (Singing) …And take it higher.
I’ve always did things my way, you know, which kind of frustrated, like, my teachers, but without me knowing or realizing I was just developing my sound. I really wanted to really just fully delve into that with this album and still hear what’s come before and what I have been influenced by, but at the same time, they’ll still know it’s me.
RASCOE: That was jazz musician and singer, Ashley Henry, talking about his new song, “Take It Higher.” His album, “Who We Are,” is out October 11.
RASCOE: That was jazz musician and singer, Ashley Henry, talking about his new song, “Take It Higher.” His album, “Who We Are,” is out October 11.
Copyright © 2024 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
