Meet Brennen Henson of The Voice Season 17

The Voice

October 9, 2019 By Mark Franklin 0

Brennen Henson, 20, of Flint, Mich., earned a spot on The Voice Season 17. (NBC Photo)

His audition: Brennen Henson, 20, of Flint, Mich., performed “Riptide” by Vance Joy. A really strong opening from Brendan made an impression, but he was well into the song because Gwen Stefani turns. Brennen turned in an impressive audition, but it wasn’t until the very end that Blake Shelton turned as well. Gwen likes the character in his voice. Blake called Brennen a great singer and a great artist. Brennen opted to join Team Gwen.

Here’s more on Brennen.

* As he was growing up, Brennen said he would participate in lip sync concerts in the basement whenever he had friends over. “We would perform for our parents and sing A LOT of Jonas Brothers haha,” he told Voice Views.

* When he was in seventh grade, he started performing with his church’s worship band, and that’s where he passion for music really springs from, Brennen says. “I started to realize that I was passionate about it, and more importantly, I believe that my talent is for something, someONE, bigger than myself. My faith is expressed in my songwriting and I am so beyond grateful for this gift I’ve been given,” he said.

* Another boost of motivation came from winning his first talent show as a junior in high school. Guess what he performed? “Riptide,” his blind audition song.

* Brennen said music has helped build his confidence. And while he hasn’t always been comfortable in front of people, he began playing gigs around his hometown after graduating high school.

* Brennen has released two songs to digital music sites to date: A cover of Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright” in 2018 and an original called “Hold Me” in May. The latter has racked up more than 100,000 streams on Spotify.

* About the time he released that single, Brennen wrote this on Instagram: “I want to be a rock star. I’ve been afraid to admit that due to fear of being called “selfish” and “egotistical,” but I’m tired of trying to lie to myself and to God and to the world. I want to be a rock star. Honesty is important. Be honest about your dreams, you don’t have them for nothing.”

* In 2014, his hometown of Flint, Mich., made the news for the wrong reason: a contaminated water supply. “I saw the community struggle,” Brennen told The Voice. “I think seeing that taught me not to take things for granted.”

* Brennen added that he’d like to use his time on The Voice to “bring a positive light to the city.”

* That said, Brennen had been living in Nashville for a few months at the time of his blind audition. He works as a server there while writing music, according to his bio on The Voice website. “It has been the best thing for me and I am so thankful I made the move,” he told Voice Views. “I can’t wait to share all that I have been working on!”

* He considers himself an alternative artist, one reason he was so happy to learn that Gwen had joined The Voice coaches’ panel for Season 17. He lists OneRepublic, Mumford & Sons, Jon Bellion, John Mayer, TobyMac and the Jonas Brothers as being among his musical inspirations.