DEVOTION is the new Gospel Soul album from Grammy-winning keyboardist, composer and producer Cory Henry, available now via Apostle Music Group. Henry describes Devotion as “a testimony of my life as a grown man.” He started playing the Hammond B3 organ at age 4 at his church in Brooklyn. You could say his devotion to music and the church community has grown too.
The new album, Devotion sounds grown up indeed, in the tradition of Henry's heroes Aretha Franklin and Andraé Crouch who transformed 20th-century gospel music. Aretha took the sacred fire of the church and used it to revolutionize secular pop, R&B, and soul. Crouch took secular sounds—like pop, rock, and jazz fusion—and used them to modernize sacred music. They also incorporated memorable melodies and layered them with sophisticated, soul-stirring vocal harmonies. Cory's Devotion very much follows this musical tradition featuring The Brent Fischer Orchestra which embraces nine of the ten tracks with arrangements done by Fischer (Kirk Franklin, Prince, Chaka Khan, and D'Angelo). The edgy strings and expansive horns offer added harmonies and emotional depth.
On Something Happens another hero of Cory's, the legendary Stevie Wonder, offers his trademark soulful harmonica solo along with Henry’s keyboards.
Produced by Henry and recorded in Los Angeles and New York, the 10-track album brings together The Apostle Voices, The Fellowship Collective choirs with guest appearances by Fred Hammond, Hezekiah Walker, Jonathan McReynolds, Lena Byrd Miles, Lillian Lloyd, Aaron Marcellus and Jeff Bradshaw.
The Fellowship Collective is the musical family with musicians Stanley Randolph, Sput Searight, Erick Walls, Jonathan Dubose, Aaron Draper, Joshua Easley, Dominique Taplin and Michael Bereal.
The Orchestra, conducted and produced by Brent Fischer was recorded at One On One studios with Matt Brownlie engineering. The album was mixed by Bradley Giroux at Chaplin studios.
Devotion, the new album, is Henry's personal expression of deep, unwavering commitment, and love for music, musicians, family and friends. The lyrics on Devotion carry Henry's personal relationship with the higher power - it's his prayer, if you will, offering hope in manifesting songs: All I Need and Show Me The Way, encouraging and reassuring songs Don't Give Up (the first single), Something Happens (with the incomparable Wonder's unmistakable sound), and the catchy single, Watches Over Me.
Spirit is just that. Spirited. It'll get you up dancing in the isles or in your living room.
The Promise, the last song on the album, is epic (tissues required). The general theme is about relationships and commitments, possibly a good companion for a soundtrack. I can imagine the song playing while the film's end credits roll. Perhaps for Frozen III (just sayin' all you music supervisors who are listening)!
Cory Henry's songs of Devotion are infectious, they seek and find JOY in creativity, in silence, in hope... and the belief (in Most High) to align hearts with the divine beauty that surrounds us.
DEVOTION is streaming now and worthy of your ears!
The former member of jazz collective, Snarky Puppy, Cory Henry has a lot to celebrate this month. His three-month residency on Sundays at Hollywood's Blue Note began on September 27, and continues on Sundays, October 18, November 15, 11:30am and 1:30 PM and December 7, 2026 at 9:30 PM
Get your tickets today and look for more tour dates coming up in Europe here!
We met up with Henry for this exclusive interview for studioexpresso. Enjoy!
SE: Your music is “Gospel Soul” It's also dance-able, filled with positive energy. Where does it all come from?
CH: It really comes from everything I grew up around. Gospel music, soul music, funk, jazz — all of it. I grew up in church, so that feeling and that energy has always been a part of me. But I also love Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, D’Angelo, Aretha Franklin, all these artists who could make you feel something spiritually and still make you move. I call it Gospel Soul because I don’t really think it has to live in one box. I want the music to make you feel good, make you dance, but also give you something you can take home with you.
SE. Your new album Devotion — you say it’s your “personal talk with God.” How do you start a conversation with God?
CH: For me, sometimes it starts by just being still. A lot of this album started with me sitting at the piano at home, during what I call my secret time with God. I wasn’t necessarily sitting down saying, “I’m going to write a song today.” I was taking time, listening, playing, praying, and allowing whatever needed to come out to come out. That’s really what devotion means to me — making the time and creating that space. SE. How did you get the name “Chief Apostle”? CH: The name came as I was making a church joke to my friend. And right in the middle of the joke I was struck with a certain seriousness about what I was saying. It’s been a life call and a directional shift on what I think about Music and the connection to how it brings people together. The name Apostle means messenger, one who is sent out. That’s what I’ve been called to do. To share the message of Love.
SE: Devotion starts with the funky Don’t Give Up, a hopeful message for fans no matter what age, background or situation. They don’t teach you resilience in high school. Who taught you?
CH: Life teaches you resilience. My family, church, music and the people I’ve been blessed to work with have all taught me something about it. I’ve had times when things were great and times when things didn’t go the way I thought they would. One thing I’ve learned is that you have to keep showing up. Sometimes the breakthrough comes because you stayed with something long enough to see the other side of it. That’s what “Don’t Give Up” is really about.
SE. Watches Over Me — I understand the album began with this song you wrote at the piano in your home a day before the LA fires. Your thoughts, besides “let me write a new song” — a premonition?
CH: I wouldn’t call it a premonition. I think sometimes you’re given something before you fully understand why you need it. I wrote “Watches Over Me” the day before the fires, and obviously the meaning of those words became even heavier after everything that happened. That’s one of the beautiful things about music and about faith. Sometimes you write something for yourself and then life reveals that it was meant for a much bigger moment.
SE. You’ve co-written and produced Kanye West’s Donda and collaborated with artists like Imagine Dragons and Rosalía. Your production 1, 2, 3s?
CH: Number one: serve the song. Number two: serve the artist. Number three: don’t be afraid to try something that isn’t obvious. Production shouldn’t be about showing people how much you know. Sometimes the best production decision is adding something, and sometimes it’s taking everything away. I’m always listening for what the song needs and what makes the artist sound the most like themselves.
SE. You speak on behalf of all artists when you say the business side is not rewarding artists anymore. What’s one thing you want to see changed, and your message of hope to fans or fellow artists on the same journey struggling to make a living?
CH: I’d love to see more value come back to the actual creators. Artists are making the music, investing in the music and building communities around it, but the economics don’t always reflect that. I think ownership is important. Understanding your business is important. And finding ways to have a direct relationship with the people who support you is important. But I would also tell artists: don’t allow the business to make you stop loving the music. Learn the business, absolutely, but protect that thing that made you want to create in the first place. Keep going, keep building, and don’t measure your value only by numbers.
SE. The Promise — the last song on the album — has a universal message: treasure relationships, be it with God, with a friend…possibly a cool song for couples getting married?! Your thoughts?
CH: Absolutely. “The Promise” is about commitment. Obviously there’s a spiritual relationship in there, but I think the idea of a promise is universal. Whether it’s your relationship with God, your spouse, your family or somebody you truly love, a real relationship requires showing up for each other. If somebody wants to get married to it, I definitely wouldn’t be mad at that! [laughs]
SE. You’re on the road a lot. Your tip to stay in shape physically and mentally?
CH: I don't have many tips on staying in shape. I try to do small workouts here and there. I try to eat as good as possible. I think I found my own way to stay active while on tour. Touring is tough. It's important to go into tour being in shape. That helps a lot.
SE: “We don’t feel enough,” says therapist Marisa Peer. How do you want your fans to feel when they hear your Devotion songs?
CH: I want people to feel hope. That’s probably the biggest thing. I want you to feel joy, peace, encouragement — whatever you need in that moment. Gospel music has always had this ability to meet people where they are. You don’t have to have the same story as me or even come from the same faith background to hear something and say, “I needed that today.” That’s what I hope Devotion can do.
SE: Show Me, All I Need are your “manifesting songs.” Do you always write songs at the piano or do ideas come from elsewhere?
CH: For this album, the piano was really the starting point. Every song began there at home during that private time. The piano has always been a place where I can process what I’m feeling. Sometimes an idea can hit you anywhere, of course, but with Devotion there was something very intentional about sitting down, making time for God and allowing the songs to come from that place.
SE: You list Andraé Crouch, The Winans, D’Angelo, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles and Aretha among your musical inspirations. What do they all have in common or what have you learned from these geniuses?
CH: Truth. They all sound like themselves. You hear Stevie and you know it’s Stevie. You hear Aretha and you know exactly who it is. Same with Ray Charles, D’Angelo, Andraé Crouch, The Winans. They’re not trying to separate soul from spirituality or technique from emotion. It’s all one thing. That’s something I’ve learned more and more as I’ve gotten older: the goal isn’t just to be great at your instrument. The goal is to have something to say.
SE: Something Happens — features the legendary Stevie Wonder. What was the process of him recording the song for you?
CH: I happen to catch the legendary Stevie Wonder at a good time. Things just connected rather perfectly. I called him a few times as I was mixing this song. And everytime the song came around the solo section, I was so fixated on having him on the record. Before He played a note , I said on the demo “Stevie Wonder”. I always write songs for him to be a part of my records. This time HE HAD TIME. We got in the studio and I was mesmerized by his ability to detail and not letting the job be done till he was satisfied. Stevie Wonder is the GREATEST Musician of all time!
SE: Robert “Sput” Searight introduced you to Brent Fischer. First time you worked with him and his orchestra. How would you describe his contribution to your new album? Complete the sentence — the result feels like a ______ ______.
CH: The result feels like a "warm hug." Brent gave the album another world to live in. I already knew his work and that whole musical language, especially through records I love, and Sput connected us. I had ideas of what I wanted emotionally and sonically, and Brent was able to take those ideas and make them bigger than I imagined. He gave the record a different look without taking away from what makes it gospel soul.
SE: What can you say about The Apostle Voices and The Fellowship Collective?
CH: The Apostle Voices are family. These are people I’ve known and made music with for years — Marcellus, Chenee Campbell, Cherub Ruth, Linny Smith, Brianna Turner and Matia Celeste Washington. Matia also co-wrote a lot of this album with me. They weren’t just background singers. They helped shape the sound, helped with the vocal production, and we held each other accountable while making the record. The Fellowship Collective is the musical family around the record. It’s musicians like Stanley Randolph, Sput Searight, Erick Walls, Jonathan Dubose, Aaron Draper, Joshua Easley, Dominique Taplin and Michael Bereal. There’s a fellowship in the way we make music — everybody brings something, and nobody is there just to show off.
SE: You have the reputation of having the “Most Joyful concerts!” with residency at the Blue Note in LA. Introduce your band and anything we should know about the upcoming shows on Oct. 18 and Nov. 15. How is this show different from the Church Experience you presented at the Miracle Theater, Inglewood?
CH: I love that — “the most joyful concerts.” That’s exactly what I want people to experience. These Blue Note shows are the Gospel Brunch Experience, and it’s really about bringing that same spirit of The Church Experience into a different environment. Great music, community, incredible musicians and singers, and the freedom for things to happen in the moment. The Fellowship Collective is the foundation of the band, and these are musicians I’ve built real musical relationships with over the years. The Apostle Voices bring another whole dimension vocally. The Miracle Theatre is a larger church-experience environment, whereas Blue Note is much more intimate. You’re right there with us. But the spirit is the same: come ready to participate, not just sit and watch.
SE: I understand you like and play basketball when you’re not playing music. Your favorite player/team? Why?
CH: Basketball and Music is LIFE. My favorite player of all time is Kobe Bryant. My favorite basketball teams of all time are the 90’s Chicago Bulls and the 80’s Showtime Lakers. Kobe showed a hyper focused dedication to the game and that's what made him the greatest. The Bulls had Jordan and he's the greatest basketball player. And the Lakers I love Magic Johnson and his ability to be a STAR at passing the ball. I hope to relive my basketball dreams soon. LOL
SE. About your sense of fashion, tres GQ! — do you work with a stylist or just have a knack for it? Maybe discipline from wearing your Sunday best at church?!
CH: I do have my own style. You have to know yourself first before anybody can bring something to the table. I do have to shout out to my friend and stylist Taneka Simone. She does keep me fly :-)
SE. You’ve been called a virtuoso keyboard player. A prized instrument you have or would like to receive on Christmas day? Would you say it’s 10,000 hours to get to where you are or something else?
CH: It’s definitely more than 10,000 hours at this point! [laughs] I started very young, so playing wasn’t something I thought of as practicing toward becoming a virtuoso. It was just part of my life. Church was my first school. You’re playing all the time, listening all the time, learning how to follow singers, support a room and respond in real time. The hours matter, but listening matters just as much. You can practice technique for 10,000 hours and still not know how to make somebody feel something.
SE. True. You won a Grammy for your Roots Gospel album, Church. How is this album different?
CH: Church was really connected to my childhood. When I made that record, I was thinking about the sounds I grew up hearing in church in Brooklyn. In a way, it was me reconnecting with that younger version of myself — what Cory at 12 or 13 years old would have wanted a gospel record to sound like. Devotion is me now. It’s a testimony of my life as a grown man. It’s about my relationship with God today, what I’ve gone through, what I’ve learned, the things I’m asking for and the things I’m grateful for. So Church was about where I come from. Devotion is about where I am.
SE:. Some of the best producers I know are good cooks. I’m coming over for lunch. What’s on the menu? CH: We are ordering Soul Food! I don't Cook but I know good food and Soul Food is my Favorite. Specifically Mac & Yams.
