By Grace Brennan Derbyshire

Henry Grace’s debut album may be titled Alive in America, but recently the British artist has been selling out venues in his hometown of London. Last month, we reviewed Grace’s performance at London’s The Jazz Cafe, highlighting his loyal fanbase and the chemistry he shares with his bandmates.

More recently, we spoke with Grace to further discuss how he views his artistry, including his work on the next album, how he finds co-writing and the positive lessons he’s learned from his previous creative “failures.”

First off, I noticed at your show that you have such a uniquely loyal fanbase. How did they come about?

I’ve approached building a fan base by going out and playing loads of gigs. From when I moved back from America to now, I’ve just tried to play as many shows as I can. Through that, you end up meeting people and you chat to them. They come to another show and you make connections with people. At the Jazz Cafe, I spent a little bit of time before the show in the bar and just bumped into a load of different people who have come to other shows. I think it’s about interacting with people and trying to create a connection. I’m really lucky that loads of people have wanted to come to shows.

Do you identify as a country artist?

I really don’t identify as a country artist. I would say that the reason my album ‘Alive in America’ was Americana in genre is because I was writing about my time there. Also, I was writing about my experiences and kind of framing them through the lens of America. So I was using American imagery, place names, scenery, to kind of get across the experiences or emotions that I wanted to. It’s interesting that I didn’t really anticipate then slightly being pigeonholed into a country genre, which has been great in loads of ways. I’ve found a whole kind of community in it, but I wouldn’t say it was my ambition.

When making the album, were there any artists that also inspired it at the time or before?

Yeah, definitely although I can’t think of anyone who kind of had a direct inspiration on the sound. but the artists I was listening to a lot at the time with people like Bon Iver and Ray LaMontagne. What I wanted to achieve with ‘Alive In America’ was the sound of one voice. Not to make it sound too much like a band production in a studio, which is how it was made, but actually to try and sonically not have that atmosphere. The album makes it seem a little bit more singular, whereas now, all I want to do is actually kind of do the opposite. I’ve got the band that you saw me play with at The Jazz Cafe and I’m so excited to record with them and capture that.

How did you meet them? Because it looks like you all have been friends forever.

Yeah, which is funny because we haven’t. I met Toby, the drummer, and Brian who plays guitar, a few years ago. They were playing at shows I was doing. Then, Tom, who was playing bass with us at Jazz Cafe, I met him earlier this year. He plays with a friend of mine. Blaine, who was playing keys we met at a songwriting retreat.

What do you find to be the biggest benefit from attending songwriting retreat and co-writing?

For me, the great thing you get out of co-writing is meeting other artists. You might find out that there is an amazing friendship or musical kind of connection that can be explored and I think that is far more valuable than the song.

Mental health is a big thing you speak about in your songs and in your songwriting. Is that something you’re going to continue to speak about in the future?

I think that I will. In my first album, I talked about mental health quite a lot because that album was telling the story of me going to the States after struggling for years here in the UK with my mental health. For me, what is important when kind of advocating for mental health is being really positive about my experience. So I went through a really difficult time, but was able to get better. That’s the message that I think does not reach enough people.

Looking ahead, what can we expect from you in terms of touring and releasing music?

I will be recording my second album this year. If I can release it this year, amazing. But I imagine it’ll probably be coming out at the start of next year. Between now and then I’m playing a few festivals around the UK. I’ve got another London headline show at Lexington August 1.

How long have you been working on this album?

I started writing probably about two years ago. I’ve written loads of songs and have been quite critical as to what kind of song I feel is right for this album.

How did you learn to be critical of your own work?

I think there is a natural or innate self criticism, which I think is essential to growing as an artist. I’m aware of when something’s really good and when something’s not. Then, I also have a band and people around me who know my music really well and are able to give me really great advice around what I’m doing and whether they think I’m doing the right thing or whether the song that I’ve just written is actually good or bad. I’m very lucky to have a lot of very loving and enthusiastic people around me who want to see this album succeed. I think that’s the key to moving forward.

So it sounds like you write everything by yourself that’s gonna be on this album. Then, you’re able to share it and you rely on the voices of others after it to critique it and see how that matches your expectations as well?

Anything that I think is really good I’ll usually take to my friend Blaine. He’s been working on the album with me and he’s been a really good kind of springboard to bounce around ideas with. Then from there, I’ll take it to the rest of the band and we’ll workshop it together as a group and figure out the arrangements.

Do you have a dream collaboration?

Yeah, I would love to work with Justin Vernon from Bon Iver. I’ve been a fan of his music ever since his first record came out and I’d love to work with him.

What’s the biggest lesson you learned while creating the last album that you’re going to use for your next album?

I don’t talk about it a huge amount, but it was incredibly difficult making that album. I recorded it almost three times. It was a serious learning curve. I failed a lot. What I learned most is that I’m sure this is what I want to do.