By Don Rhodes II | Birmingham Times
For Jaeden Henderson, gospel isn’t just a genre of music it’s an assignment from God. At just 22 years old, the recent Miles College graduate has been nominated for Emerging Artist of the Year by the Gospel Sound Music Awards, and he’s giving all credit to his faith.
“What inspired me to start making gospel music was purely my true love for God,” Henderson told The Birmingham Times. “Anybody that knows me knows that I have a love for God like none other. I love Him so much with all my heart and soul.”
Henderson initially hesitated to pursue gospel music because he was concerned it might limit him creatively, but God gave him clarity and confidence, he said. “I didn’t want to do gospel only because sometimes genres and people can box you in,” he explained. “But God really allowed me the freedom to understand that my worship is freeing, and my praise gives me access into different spaces and realms that only He could provide.”
That spiritual freedom has translated into a music ministry that reaches beyond stage or studio. “I wanted to make sure that I was blessing Him at all times in anything that I do whether it be music, whether it be graphics, whether it be anything I wanted to make sure that that demonstration was out for the entire world,” he said.
Some of his songs include A New Thing, Blooming Season, and Only You.
The Gospel Sound Music Awards is a Birmingham-based organization that brings together artists, fans, and industry professionals to recognize and celebrate impactful and inspirational gospel music.
When Henderson found out he had been nominated, the feeling was overwhelming. “Oh my God, I was absolutely floored,” he said. “Some people will say, ‘Yo, whatever, I got nominated for an award.’ But I see it as a big deal anything that I’m nominated or awarded for I know that it was a blessing from God.”
“To know that people are blessed by my ministry, blessed and inspired by my music it just makes me grateful for this gift that is not my own. I’m a willing vessel to God.”
Music As Ministry
Henderson’s spiritual and creative growth was nurtured at Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama, where he earned his degree this year in Communications with a focus in Graphic Design. “Miles was really a great, great platform for me,” he said. “It was a great stepping stone for me to continue to grow and mature in the things I was already experienced in, but made sure that they were refined and ready to go out into the world.”
He credited Dr. Bobbie Knight, President of Miles College, for opening the door. “I sang at a (high school) graduation party for my friend Jordyn Hudson, and Dr. Knight was there,” he recalled. “Under my breath, I told God “that I wanted an HBCU experience and nobody else knew that but Him.’”
“[President Knight] came up to me and said, ‘It would be a full ride [scholarship] on her,’ and she felt led to do it … she kept her word.”
During his time at Miles, Henderson served as president of the college choir, produced a documentary in partnership with the Propel Center [is a global leadership hub that empowers HBCU students with training in technology, entrepreneurship, and social justice], and interned at the 2150 Center for Innovation and Growth [at Miles College is an innovation hub led by Chuck Faush that supports HBCU entrepreneurship and research.]
Still, music remained his ministry. “My life has always been based on obedience in God, faith in God, and following God’s will and God’s way,” Henderson said. “The Bible says in Proverbs: ‘A man writes his plans, but the Lord’s will prevails.’ Proverbs 19:21 NIV. That’s how I live my life and that’s what I hope people take from my music.”
“I don’t make music just for the comfort of it. I love music, but I make music that God specifically gives to me and sometimes God sings to me.”
That divine collaboration extends to his business, By Faith J. Designs Creative Agency. “God gives me designs we design based on faith-filled vision,” he said. “So whether it’s music or graphics, every piece of work is to give Him glory.”
“The Presence Of God”
Henderson, who was born in Birmingham and grew up in Brighton, Alabama, attended the Alabama School of Fine Arts, serves as a Worship Leader at Unity Christian Center on Alabaster where he is a member and has been on staff for the past year.
Asked what he hopes people feel when listening to his music, Henderson was clear: “I pray they feel God rising and boosting their faith. That they feel energized, motivated but most importantly, that they feel the presence of God.”
He credits artists like Stevie Wonder, Jill Scott, Fred Hammond, Mary Mary, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, and Gregory Porter for inspiring him not just musically, but emotionally and spiritually. “The way they’re able to deliver songs with so much conviction and passion really inspired me at an early age,” he said. “I said to myself, ‘Yeah, I’m gonna do that and I’m gonna make sure I sing with a passion like none other.’”
Looking ahead, Henderson hopes his sound will touch lives beyond the gospel music industry. “I hope to impact the people by helping them realize that God is the center of everything we do,” he said. “Whether you’re in the marketplace, entrepreneurship, corporate world in everything He is the center.”
“I pray that people will listen for God’s voice and not my own. My voice is a gift He gave me and I want to be a good steward over that gift. Not unto us, but to give God the glory and the honor.”
For more on Henderson visit www.jaedenhenderson.com
