I am not the only one who enjoys a good music video with some substance. To see how an artist chooses to illustrate the words visually is an experience. Avery Henley has 15 years of experience in videography working with names such as Lil Boosie, Baby Fendi, Rick Ross, and Jonathan McReynolds. He is not only creating music videos; he is taking ideas and creating visual art. This past Halloween season just makes you think of the creativity and vision that went into creating timeless masterpieces like “Thriller”. The iconic song featured on the highest-selling album of all time, King of Pop. The iconic video also won the 1996 Grammy for Best Music Video.
Like most of the greats in music, Henley’s passion for music started off in the church. He was once in a choir in church even though he was not the best singer. One day the pastor asked if someone wanted to learn the rap lyrics for the legendary song “Joyful Joyful”. Raise your hand if you are also getting Sister Act 2 vibes. He learned it easier than most of the kids. From that day, the spark was ignited.
“I grew a passion for music and used it as an outlet of expression. I already loved movies, so once my passion for music grew, it wasn’t long before music videos were on my radar. In my teenage years, I found myself still involved with music. I began shooting my own videos. Music videos have always been one of my favorite filmmaking experiences. They are concise, entertaining, and packed with artistic prowess.”
We have heard in various forms that music is starting to lose the creative flair it once had. In a recent interview, Eve describes the current state of hip hop using words such as “sameness” and “clones”. She also took the time to acknowledge there are dope artists out there. We also need dope directors to help elevate and express artists’ true creativity. Henley gives us details on his creative process when working with artists.
“My process can differ. The majority of the time, I start by familiarizing myself with the song; including its lyrics. I like to juxtapose ideas. Sometimes instead of listening to the words I just think about how the music makes me feel.”
“My favorite approach is to find a phrase or lyric in the song that could be taken a different way than what the artist meant. For example, I’m shooting a pop song where the female artist says “Time tells me I need you in my life”. I knew this lyric was referring to her loving a counterpart more and more over time. She expressed it using personification. For the video instead of showing her being in love with a guy, I created a story about a girl who made “time” itself fall in love with her and now she is living through different ages in history singing this song. Because time loves her, she never dies. When the artist heard this treatment she was blown away. That’s always been my goal. I strive to look at things from a different perspective so we can create something unique.”
Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, and Ryan Coogler are some of the names that have inspired Henley. He also has the privilege to have valuable mentors that have been able to guide him in his career. He mentions Ed Pryor, Andrew Sandler, and Jora Frantzis also creating their own lanes in the music video world.
Between mask mandates and mass resignations for the workforce; there is so much going on in the world. If you have not already made self-care a priority; you need to seriously reconsider. We need to get out of the notion that self-care is just bubble bath and spa days. Self-care is a form of taking care of yourself mentally, physically, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Henley shares how the past year has taught us all a valuable lesson and what self-care looks like as a black man in America.
“I am learning to step away and find time to recenter when I feel overwhelmed, I enjoy walking to clear my mind. Self-care doesn’t have to look the same for all of us. I believe that it is the act of becoming more aware of our personal needs. As a Black man in America, I believe that prayer has become my largest form of self-care. It is nice to have others pray for you, but it is a completely different level of faith to trust yourself to articulate your wants, needs, and desires in this form.”
We can look to see much more coming from the director. He is working on a project with Sony, and currently taking on the role of manager.
Connect on Social Media with Avery Henley!
Website: https://www.henleyproductions.net
IG: https://instagram.com/henleyproductions?utm_medium=copy_link
Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/HenleyProductions/
