Henry Verus Talks “Be a Man,” Evergreen Park and the Place That Made Him

Home is complicated in Henry Verus’ music.

It can be a place you miss, a collection of people and memories, or something that follows you long after you’ve left. On his new single “Be a Man,” Henry finds himself looking back toward Chicago and unpacking an idea he heard throughout his formative years.

The song, out October 2, began in his friend Aidan’s apartment in Los Angeles. Henry remembers disappearing into a guest room to write and, on that particular day, missing Chicago.

Not only the city, but everything attached to it.

“The concept of ‘being a man’ is something boys hear in their most formative years; something I heard a lot back home. I wanted to write about the weight of that, the weight of carrying other people’s burden.”

Henry says the song could have soundtracked parts of his own childhood, with references to the people he loves and thoughts he has carried with him for years.

That connection to home runs much deeper than one song. It sits at the center of Evergreen Park, Henry’s forthcoming EP arriving November 6.

The Sound of Home

Henry grew up on the South Side of Chicago before eventually making his way to Los Angeles, and the music he heard at home still has fingerprints all over the artist he is today.

His dad introduced him to Curtis Mayfield, Donny Hathaway, Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy. His mom gravitated toward the softer side of things, including Carole King and emotional singer-songwriter pop. On Evergreen Park, Henry wanted to find a place somewhere between the two.

“I wanted every song to feel vintage and antique, like it could come from a previous time period but simultaneously have evidence of being contemporary and internet-age.”

That idea helps explain why putting a single genre around Henry feels unnecessary. R&B, soul, blues and pop can all surface within his music, but he isn't sitting down to decide which box a song belongs in.

Most of the time, he's following instinct.

“I’m channelling my influences and life experiences without thinking about them,” Henry says, “and have learned to unapologetically say exactly what’s on my mind, no matter how private or off-putting that might be.”

It’s an approach that makes “Be a Man” feel especially personal. The song isn't simply borrowing from Henry’s hometown sonically; Chicago is woven into why the song exists at all.

Writing Toward the Uncomfortable

That willingness to say the uncomfortable thing has become increasingly important to Henry.

Having released music from a young age, he sees a noticeable difference between the way he approached songwriting then and how he writes now. Where he once searched for a single line capable of capturing an entire feeling, he now finds himself digging into the parts that aren't as easy to summarize.

“I search for and include discomfort in my writing to make the resolve feel so much more relieving. My old writing was a lot less emotionally dynamic.”

He’s also learned that writing can't always be forced.

When inspiration disappears, Henry no longer treats it as evidence that something has gone wrong. Instead, he sees living as part of the process.

“When nothing comes to me now, I know I have to go be human. Make mistakes, fall down, get up, love unconditionally, get angry, break my own heart. Without all of that, I’m simply just doing busy work.”

There’s something revealing about that answer. Henry’s music doesn't feel interested in tidying up complicated emotions for the sake of an easy conclusion. Even knowing when a song is finished comes down to protecting whatever made it interesting in the first place.

His goal, he says, isn't necessarily to satisfy every person listening.

“My job is to make them feel something or form an opinion on something.”

Evergreen Park

The beginnings of Evergreen Park stretch back further than “Be a Man.”

Henry knew from the moment he wrote “Girls Like You,” the first song created for the project, that it belonged to something larger. What that larger project actually looked like wouldn't become clear until much later.

Henry entered rehab in December and told Everyday Jams that sobriety brought a new clarity to both his life and his relationship with these songs. At the time of answering our questions, he was approaching nine months sober.

Some of the music had become intensely private to him over the years, particularly while he was drinking. Eventually, his perspective shifted.

“Sobriety lit my work ethic on fire and more importantly, made me realize it would be entirely selfish to keep these songs behind closed doors. To help a neighbor is to help myself.”

That makes Evergreen Park feel less like a collection of songs assembled for a release and more like Henry finally allowing himself to put down something he has been carrying.

And while the EP is deeply connected to where he's been, Henry doesn't see it as a blueprint for everything that comes next.

He’s particularly excited for listeners to hear “She Looks Like Chicago,” a track whose gritty guitar tones point more directly toward the sound he wants to explore beyond this project. Distortion, fuzz and overdrive have become tools Henry is drawn to for the emotion they can carry.

For now, though, “Be a Man” brings us back to where much of this started: Chicago, childhood and the things we carry with us long after we've grown up.

Henry describes Evergreen Park as a goodbye to an uncertain period of his life, but its honesty makes the project feel equally interested in what happens after.

“These songs are a look into the South Side of Chicago and some of the things that made me exactly who I am today. Above all else, it’s hurtfully honest and I hope people understand themselves a little bit better after listening.”

Stream “Be a Man” by Henry Verus, out now . Evergreen Park arrives November 6.

Photography: Kalos X