In recent years soul music in the UK had taken a back seat to Hip Hop and Grime as we all wondered when we were going to see the new generation of Sade‘s, Jill Scott‘s, D’Angelo‘s, Maxwell‘s and Mary J. Blige‘s come to the forefront of the charts again.
Thankfully, Brit ginger-kid with swag Ed Sheeran, clean cut LGBT hero Sam Smith and multiple record-breaker Adele brought the soulful melodies back strong and on a global stage. Now everyone’s raving about the new kid on the block. A young man called Samm Henshaw has the music industry and fans buzzing and he’s officially 2016’s worst kept secret.
Samm has huge audiences singing alongside his songs word for word, plus a stellar lineup of pop-star fans including singer James Bay, who spotted him in a video and invited him to support his tour.
Image Credit: Jon Stone.
We caught up with him after his sold out gig at Hackneys Oslo this past week to talk Backstreet Boys, Brit soul power and the rise of the African diaspora.
Your live set is really strong and unique with sounds from blues, soul, indie, rock, ballads and more. How important was it for you to have a really diverse mix of styles and sounds?
For me, that’s one of the most important things about playing live. I’m influenced by so many genres of music and you can’t always express that on a recording, so when me and the band get together we let it all come out!
Call and response with your audience is a big part of your set. It’s perfect for huge summer festivals. How did you evolve this part of you set and why is it an integral part of the Samm Henshaw brand?
You know what, I’m lucky enough to have an audience that responds to me so even for that, I’m grateful. I think growing up in church has played a massive part in this, seeing the worship leader in tune with the congregation—the connection between the two is just astonishing. I’m also not a huge fan of being sung at for hours, as an audience member I want to feel like I’m a part of what’s going on on stage, so I try to give the audience a bit of that myself.
The sell-out audience at your show really enjoyed the singing game where they guessed the classic song and sang along with you. Michael Jackson is expected, but Backstreet Boys was a great surprise. Talk to us about how eclectic your music tastes are?
Backstreet Boys is a classic, they deserve more credit, you’ll be surprised how many undercover Backstreet Boys fans there are! I was brought up in a household that had all sorts of music playing, from gospel to country, pop music to folk, it provided a great basis to start exploring my own musical tastes. When I got a bit older I found some great musicians of my own: Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, D’Angelo, Stevie Wonder.
Image Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian.
Your live band The Sound Experiment really vibe well with you and made the live show very exciting. Tell us about them and how integral they are to the Samm Henshaw live experience?
They’re all my mates, furthermore they’re all my brothers. I grew up with them so we’ve been around each other a long time and I think it shows on the stage. I’m just fortunate that most of my closest friends are such amazing musicians.
Numerous British vocalists like Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran have conquered international and American fan bases. What is it about British singers and songs that mean you punch so high above your weight in the international arena?
You know what, we’ve just been blessed to have a massive pool of culture to pull from growing up in Britain. We don’t often hit it big but when we do, we go hard.
Over the past decade top talent from the African diaspora has taken over sport, Hollywood and music. Why is it Millennials with African heritage are now front and center of so many industries?
I just think it’s one of those moments in history where a certain population or nation finds their niche, like the Brit invasion in the 60s, or the EDM movement that has dominated the charts recently. I guess its just Africa’s time!
Are there any misconceptions and stereotypes people assume when seeing you before hearing your music?
Not to my knowledge however I do think when you look at my pictures you’re not entirely sure what sort of music I’m going to play. Sometimes I think my pics look like I’m going rap or sing R&B, which makes it that much cooler when you give them something different. I’ve had so many people come up to me and say, “I never expected that voice or sound to come out of you.”
How much do you love the genre of Hip Hop culture as a way of life? When did you fall in love with Hip Hop and how did you know it was a part of the future as we know it?
I honestly cannot remember when I first fell in love with Hip Hop per se, but I’ve always just had this love for it. I remember listening to people like Mos Def and Snoop Dogg and many others and it made me really study the genre and find out about the contributions of Biggie and Tupac, etc.
I actually attempted to rap on my first EP on the intro song “Temptations.” It was a short lived dream, I’ll stick to what I’m best at!
Samm Henshaw is touring all summer supporting other artists and is headlining his own mini UK tour from November.
Image Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian.
