NICOLE HENRY’S 5TH ANNUAL WINTER CONCERT
By Rafa Carvajal | Photos provided by Nicole Henry
The very talented and beautiful singer Nicole Henry brings her 5th Annual Winter Concert to the Colony Theater on Saturday, December 16 at 8 p.m., benefiting the Miami Music Project. Last year’s concert was outstanding, so I recommend buying your tickets to Nicole’s Annual Winter Concert before they sell out, by visiting colonymb.org or calling 800.211.1414. You can also choose to enjoy a VIP package with a reception starting at 6:30 p.m.
With her amazing voice and strong command of any musical stage, Nicole Henry is one of the jazz world’s most applauded chanteuses. Nicole was named Best New Jazz Artist of 2004 in Japan after the release of her very popular CD The Nearness of You. One year later, her Teach Me Tonight album became No. 1 in Japan and was named HMV Japan’s Best Vocal Jazz Album of 2005. In 2008, Nicole’s The Very Thought of You CD reached No. 7 on Billboard’s jazz chart, thrilling jazz audiences across the U.S. She released her Embraceable CD in 2011 with more original songs, soul and even a touch of gospel, and it reached the Top 20 on jazz and smooth U.S. jazz radio charts. In 2013, Nicole released her 13-track live album So Good, So Right: Nicole Henry Live with her soulful renditions of some of her favorite classic hits of the ‘70s from such iconic artists as Bill Withers, Aretha Franklin, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, The Commodores and Gladys Knight.
Wire Magazine sat down for a chat with Nicole prior to this year’s Winter Concert.
Rafa
Carvajal: Tell us about
your upcoming 5th Annual Winter Concert to benefit Miami Music Project.
Nicole
Henry: Well, to start,
I can’t believe it’s been five years already! Miami Beach has been my musical
home since my unofficial debut singing at one of Kitty Meow’s Café Torino Drag
Nights back in the '90s! And although I’ve been fortunate to travel all over
the world singing, it’s great coming back here where I recorded my first CD and
had my first paying gigs. This annual concert at the Colony Theatre started for
me in 2013, when my team and I took a leap of faith and produced a concert for
my 6th CD release. I desired to have it on Miami Beach, however, there were no
sizeable jazz clubs. When that first concert sold out, we were inspired to
start this tradition, and thank God it’s sold out every year! Because I love
children and value arts education, each year the concert benefits a children’s
non-profit organization in Miami-Dade.
RC: What type of music and songs will
you be singing for your fans and Miami Music Project supporters?
NH: For the first time in this concert
series, I’m going to be backed by the Grammy-nominated Miami Mass Choir, so
needless to say, we’ve got some big songs! This year, the theme is joy and the
songs will range from pop, to soul, jazz, gospel and holiday classics. I want
us to celebrate and meet one another on a higher plain, compared to what is
being delivered to us in the news these days. I want people to be especially
uplifted… It’s the holidays!
RC: Why is the Miami Music Project so
important to you?
NH: “I believe that children are
our future, teach them well and let them lead…” oh sorry. Seriously, our
kids deserve a great foundation, so their lives can be balanced and full of
personal expression. I know that access to the arts allows for this and much
more. For that reason, I’m delighted to support Miami Music Project, and I’m
actually a member of their board. They serve hundreds of students in Miami-Dade
with music lessons after school and use music as a tool to “compose better
lives.” The results are measurable and much-needed for hundreds, even
thousands more students here. So, I want to expose their work to my fanbase and
raise funds for their wonderful efforts. On that note, I feel it’s insane that
we live in a country where our public schools don’t have mandatory art and
music classes. It’s sad… very sad.
RC: Besides buying tickets to your
concert, how else can people help further the mission of the Miami Music
Project?
NH: Please visit
miamimusicproject.org and make donations. These donations help buy instruments
and support the after-school programs. These children gain confidence, skills
and experience working in groups, and their school grades and testing averages
are raised by these activities. Every little bit helps, even if you can’t make
the concert, please give.
RC: Why do you love singing so much?
NH: It’s such an immediate vehicle to
share my love, respect and hope for humanity. I feel very blessed to get to do
what I do, especially when I get to perform live. Concerts are such unifying
experiences.
RC: How did you develop such an
amazing voice and strong command of the stage?
NH: Why, thank you. Practice,
practice, practice! I continue to take voice lessons, I maintain vocal health
and try to stay in physical shape, so I’m rarely sick and can have the physical
endurance to tour and make myself available to the music.
RC: Who are your biggest role models
in the music industry and why?
NH: I’d say Nancy Wilson, Patti
LaBelle, Tina Turner, Lena Horne, and Diahann Carroll. I admire their talents,
of course, and their strength, wisdom, longevity, faith, social responsibility,
spirituality, endurance… and such class!
RC: What type of music do you enjoy
singing the most? Why this music?
NH: Not to sound cheeky, but I love a
good melody and strong lyric. It doesn’t matter the genre or topic – a good
story is a good story. And that’s my responsibility; to tell a compelling story
in the most beautiful way I possibly can. The challenge and joy comes in figuring
out how to do that. Thank God for my wonderful musicians who help me make that
happen.
RC: Describe yourself in 3 words.
NH: Compassionate, curious and
adventurous.
RC: What do you tell young kids who
look up to you and want to pursue a career as a singer?
NH: I tell them to focus on the joy of
entertaining people and always use their own voice – not to mimic others.
RC: Is there anything else you would
like to share with Wire Magazine readers?
NH: Thanks for your support over the
many years here on Miami Beach!
This was originally published in Wire Magazine Issue 46.2017