Interview: Jager Henry Talks About What It Was Like Getting the Approval of His Dad, Jason Bonham – ‘That Was the Pinnacle For Me’

In August, Jager Henry celebrated the release of his debut EP, Heart of Thorns, and on Wednesday (Nov. 6), he joined Loudwire Nights to dive into it.

“I wrote a bunch of music and I would listen to it and it would be great — I’m not disappointed and I’m very proud of it — but it just didn’t feel right,” Henry told host Chuck Armstrong about what led to the songs that eventually formed Heart of Thorns.

“You know when you think of something, you’re like, ‘Oh, it’s on the tip of my tongue,’ but you can’t say it? It felt like I was right there. I was so close.”

As opposed to trying to force those songs to work for the EP, Henry decided to scrap everything and write brand-new tracks. The end result is a collection of music that he couldn’t be prouder of.

“The first riff…it just hit me and I was like, ‘This is it, this is what was supposed to happen,’” he said.

“There was no explanation for it. It was more of just a, ‘What just happened and how can we make sure this happens every single time.’”

When Jason Bonham Approved of Jager Henry’s New EP

It wasn’t simply that Henry knew personally he had the right songs for Heart of Thorns, but he also received the highest approval he could imagine.

“There was music I would send my father,” Henry recalled about sharing songs with his dad, Jason Bonham, “and he’ll probably hate me saying this, but he would just not be impressed. He would go, ‘Nah, it’s not good. No, not yet.’”

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But when Henry sent his dad Heart of Thorns, something clicked.

“He was just like, ‘Whoa. Wow. Okay, let me call a friend. Let’s make sure the right people hear this,’” Henry explained.

“I don’t care for a billion streams. My dad just said he liked it. It was the one project I didn’t expect him to like, you know, with the screams and stuff … That was the pinnacle for me, hearing him say that he liked it.”

What Else Did Jager Henry Discuss on Loudwire Nights?

Who his biggest inspiration was for Heart of Thorns: “Daughtry … I have a song, unreleased, that I sent to his team in hopes that he’ll respond. So Chris, if you’re [listening to] this, check it out because I think you would absolutely make it a Platinum hit.”
What it’s like opening for his dad’s band: “It’s such a cool honor to play with him because I know he wished he got to do this with his dad.”
The moment he knew he wanted to be a frontman and not a drummer: “When I got to see AC/DC, it just clicked. I was like, ‘I don’t want to be behind the kid. I want to be out there dancing in front.’”

Listen to the Full Interview in the Podcast Player Below

Jager Henry joined Loudwire Nights on Wednesday, Nov. 6; the show replays online here, and you can tune in live every weeknight at 7PM ET or on the Loudwire app; you can also see if the show is available on your local radio station and listen to interviews on-demand.