…He has rocked stages across the US from the Essence Music Festival in New … Read Full Bio ↴…He has rocked stages across the US from the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans to The Legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem, USA. He has shared stages with the likes of the legendary Twinkie Clarke, Soul Singer Tony Terry and Master comedian Rodney Perry. He IS the Smooth Jazz Phenomenon. He IS the one, J. Henry and this is his story…

J. Henry hails from the Jazz Capital of the World, New Orleans, Louisiana. This Crescent City native has been dazzling audiences across the U.S. for the last 20 years. His gift for music was recognized early at age 7, and at 9 years old he was given the opportunity to learn to play any instrument of his choosing and he found his love for music in the saxophone. His uncle, New Orleans Jazz Legend Pierre Porree, gave him his very first and J. continued to study under his mentorship and under another New Orleans Jazz Legend, Brian Graber.

“I would sit on the front porch for hours a day making noise. Eventually that noise became songs”
After practicing 4 to 5 hours a day, month after month, J. felt he was ready to perform his first solo at his church playing “When The Saints Go Marching In”. With the energy and confidence that he performs with today, you would have never guessed that as a child he was stage fright. By the age of 13 he began playing for different churches, and by the age of 16 was playing professionally. At age 17, J. and his twin brother Cardell started a singing group named Cri’stal. The group was very successful in New Orleans winning numerous talent competitions in and around the city. Yet the greatest accomplishment for J. was fulfilling his childhood dream of performing on “Showtime at the Apollo”, where he and the group won unanimously.

“…You never go through anything for yourself in life…”

In 2005, tragedy struck New Orleans in the form of Hurricane Katrina. Upon returning to his hometown J. was faced with 6ft of water in his home and total loss. J. moved to Atlanta, GA with nothing but 1 shirt, 2 pairs of pants, two pairs of socks and his saxophones. Like so many others from the Crescent City, he had to start all over. While in Atlanta trials and tribulations struck again and again as he became homeless and lost everything three times. He even recalls working as a maintenance man in an apartment community, sleeping at his job in the clubhouse and having to sneak in late at night and get up before anyone came to work. The only person who knew the severity of his living conditions was his soon to be wife, who stayed by his side. Through every challenge, J. never lost his faith or his focus. He struggled through 2006, yet still worked hard at pursuing his dreams, continuing to make a name for himself. He would continue to expand and perfect his signature sound by playing with different bands and for different organizations in and around Atlanta. His faith and perseverance kept him going and eventually helped him become stable.

In the summer of 2008 while rehearsing for a show he met Daron Steward (cousin of Sly Stone) who gave him the name “J. Henry“, and whom he had great chemistry with. A month later he began working on his debut album. During the process of recording the album he faced many challenges, but worked through them. After almost 2 years of writing and production, J. Henry released his appropriately entitled debut album, “Long Time Coming” in August of 2010.

J. Henry is determined to be a driving force to bringing Smooth Jazz back to prominence. In 21 year, he has rocked stages with Bishop Paul S. Morton, P.J. Morton, Angie Stone, Tony Terry, Rodney Perry, Destiny’s Child, Don D.C. Curry, Twinkie Clark, Eric Benet, Marvin Sapp, Jai Reed, Kevon Edmonds, Craig Adams and Ron Laster. His live performances are superb and mesmerizingly interactive. The high levels of energy and emotion that J. packs into every performance, draws audiences into his incredible story of love, trial and triumph. The J. Henry Experience has been quoted as being “the return to the original live music experience.” With the release of LONG TIME COMING, there has been a resurgence of the live music experience and a major shot in the arm for Smooth Jazz worldwide. The album has been incredibly well received especially in Europe and Africa. When it comes to his music and the effect that J. Henry is having on Smooth Jazz overall, Rod Lucas of Lucas Media in the UK summed it up in one word, "Fantastic".

I'll Be There
J. Henry Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You and I must make a pact
We must bring salvation back,
Where there is love, I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll reach out my hand to you
I'll have faith in all you do.
Just call my name and I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll be there to comfort you,
Build my world of dreams around you,
I'm so glad that I found you.

I'll be there with a love that's strong,
I'll be your strength,
I'll keep holdin' on (Holdin' on)
Yes I will, yes I will

Let me fill your heart with joy and laughter,
Togetherness, girl, is all I'm after,
Whenever you need me, I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll be there to protect you, (yeah baby)
With unselfish love that respects you.
Just call my name, I'll be there (I'll be there)

I'll be there to comfort you,
Build my world of dreams around you,
I'm so glad that I found you.

I'll be there with a love that's strong,
I'll be your strength,
I'll keep holdin' on.
Ooh ooh ooh
Yes I will (Holdin' on, holdin' on)
Yes I will

If you should ever find someone new
I know he better be good to you
'Cause if he doesn't
I'll be there (I'll be there)

Don't you know baby I'll be there
I'll be there I'll be there

Just call my name, I'll be there (I'll be there)
Just look over your shoulders honey, ooh!
I'll be there, I'll be there,
Whenever you need me, I'll be there (I'll be there)

Don't you know baby,
I'll be there, I'll be there

Just call my name, I'll be there (I'll be there)
Oh oh oh oh I'll be there, I'll be there

Overall Meaning

The song "I'll Be There" by J. Henry is a promise of unwavering love and support between two people. The opening lines of the song state that "You and I must make a pact" to bring salvation, or a sense of inner peace and happiness, back into their lives. The singer promises to always be there for their significant other. They will offer a helping hand and have faith in them. The love described in this song is not possessive, but rather focuses on nurturing the other person's dreams and supporting them unconditionally.

Throughout the rest of the song, the singer continues to reassure their loved one that they will always be there to comfort them and protect them. The lyrics "Let me fill your heart with joy and laughter, togetherness, girl, is all I'm after" conveys the sentiment that the singer is content as long as they are together with their partner. The promise of unconditional love continues in the lines "I'll be there with a love that's strong, I'll be your strength, I'll keep holdin' on." The final lines of the song reiterate that the singer will stand by their loved one, always ready to offer support and comfort.

Overall, "I'll Be There" is a poignant song about the power of love and the importance of being there for the people we care about. The message is universal and easily relatable, making it a timeless classic.

Line by Line Meaning

You and I must make a pact
We need to agree and work together.

We must bring salvation back,
Our job is to bring back hope and goodness in the world.

Where there is love, I'll be there (I'll be there)
Wherever you feel love, I'll be there to support you.

I'll reach out my hand to you
I'll be the one to take the first step towards you.

I'll have faith in all you do.
I believe in you and trust you completely.

Just call my name and I'll be there (I'll be there)
No matter where you are, just say my name and I'll come to you.

I'll be there to comfort you,
I'll be your comforter in times of need.

Build my world of dreams around you,
I want to create a beautiful world around us.

I'm so glad that I found you.
I'm happy and grateful to have you in my life.

I'll be there with a love that's strong,
My love for you will be strong and enduring.

I'll be your strength,
I'll be the one to support and give you strength.

I'll keep holdin' on (Holdin' on)
I'll never let you go and will always hold on to you.

Let me fill your heart with joy and laughter,
I want to make you happy and bring joy to your life.

Togetherness, girl, is all I'm after,
All I want is to be together with you.

Whenever you need me, I'll be there (I'll be there)
I'll always be there when you need me.

I'll be there to protect you, (yeah baby)
I'll be there to protect you from harm.

With unselfish love that respects you.
My love for you will be selfless and respectful.

Ooh ooh ooh
Vocalization expressing emotion.

If you should ever find someone new
If you ever find someone else.

I know he better be good to you
He better treat you well.

'Cause if he doesn't
If he mistreats you.

Don't you know baby I'll be there
I'll be there to help and support you.

Just look over your shoulders honey, ooh!
Just turn around and you'll see me.

Oh oh oh oh I'll be there, I'll be there
I'll always be there for you.

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Tratore
Written by: Berry Gordy Jr, Bob West, Hal Davis, Willie Hutch

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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