{"id":84605,"date":"2023-10-18T12:17:48","date_gmt":"2023-10-18T10:17:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/?p=84605"},"modified":"2023-10-18T12:17:50","modified_gmt":"2023-10-18T10:17:50","slug":"songs-through-the-darkness-at-the-lafayette","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2023\/10\/songs-through-the-darkness-at-the-lafayette\/","title":{"rendered":"Songs Through The Darkness at The Lafayette"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There have been several instances in the life of Henry Grace where the light at the end of the tunnel was music, a beacon to hang on to when life became too much to comprehend and depression filled the void. This week at The Lafayette, surely one of London\u2019s outstanding musical venues, he became that light as he not only starred in but organised a magical night of music featuring Jamie Lawson and Elles Bailey alongside his considerable talent.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Last week\u2019s performance was billed as Songs Through The Darkness and was performed in aid and conjunction with Help Musicians, dedicated mental health support line and service, Music Minds Matter, a charity that is there to help those working in music who are struggling to cope with anything, music or otherwise, that is affecting their mental wellbeing.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The night opened with Henry Grace who played a faultless set accompanied by special guest Blaine Harrison of the Mystery Jets. I last saw Henry play London\u2019s Omeara venue and it was wonderful to see him play live again. Playing to raise awareness for a cause so close to his heart seemed to give him wings as he spoke eloquently and with real emotion about what the evening meant to him before he started to play his set. Every word he sang seemed infused with greater depth and provided the first of many hair on the back of the neck moments the evening would bring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Following Henry on stage was one of our most acclaimed Americana Blues artists. Elles Bailey took to the stage accompanied only by Ash Tucker and I felt truly privileged to witness her voice in such a stripped back format; so stripped back in fact that her finale was to sing without the microphone to an awestruck audience who obviously felt the communion of the moment. To see a singer who I recently witnessed blow the roof off of her stage at the Black Deer Festival this summer felt like something really special. Proof, if proof were needed, of the quality of the artist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To close out the evening Jamie Lawson took to the stage. Many will know Jamie for his worldwide smash hit \u2018I Wasn\u2019t Expecting That\u2019 and his well known status as Ed Sheeran\u2019s first signing to his record label Gingerbread Man Records but this is an artist just about to release his sixth album \u2018Little Weaknesses\u2019 after a four year hiatus and based on his performance the record is a must have. My personal stand out moment and one I will never forget is watching him sing his new song \u2018When It Comes To Love\u2019, a stunning track co written with Irish artists Megan O\u2019Neill and Mark Caplice. The thing that made this super special is that Mark was in the audience watching the performance and standing next to me. Watching him enjoy the moment of seeing something he helped create, sing along and see the fantastic reaction the song received from the sold out Lafayette audience was a truly heartwarming moment and totally encapsulated for me everything the evening was about; the restorative powers of music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s sometimes some confusion about the name of the publication I write for and people misinterpret the name Essentially Pop. It\u2019s a statement of genre freedom not a box; all music is essentially pop, after all The Sex Pistols had no problem performing on Top of the Pops back in 1977. But, to concentrate on the word Pop is to miss the thing that stands out for me and that\u2019s the word Essential because for me music is simply essential to my well being; to lose it would be inconceivable. What Henry Grace tapped into last week was exactly that. Music is a super power and it\u2019s so important to support it so please check out the artists I\u2019ve written about today because what they do is tap into their innermost feelings to help us understand ours. Help Musicians is an important cause but it should be a given for all of us\u2026..please help musicians because they are the soundtrack to our lives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There have been several instances in the life of Henry Grace where the light at the end of the tunnel was music, a beacon to hang on to when life became too much to comprehend and depression filled the void. This week at The Lafayette, surely one of London\u2019s outstanding musical venues, he became that light as he not only starred in but organised a magical night of music featuring Jamie Lawson and Elles Bailey alongside his considerable talent.<\/p>\n

<\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/path><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/g><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":84620,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"There have been several instances in the life of Henry Grace where the light at the end of the tunnel was music, a beacon to hang on to when life became too much to comprehend and depression filled the void. This week at The Lafayette, surely one of London\u2019s outstanding musical venues, he became that light as he not only starred in but organised a magical night of music featuring Jamie Lawson and Elles Bailey alongside his considerable talent.","jetpack_seo_html_title":"Songs Through The Darkness at The Lafayette","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[264,21450,7],"tags":[31725,31724,131,31135,6489,26045,30619,14098,65,31723,6349,7690,116,3138,31722],"class_list":["post-84605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-concerts","category-gig-reviews","category-music","tag-ash-tucker","tag-blaine-harrison","tag-concert","tag-elles-bailey","tag-gig-review","tag-help-musicians","tag-henry-grace","tag-jamie-lawson","tag-london","tag-music-minds-matter","tag-mystery-jets","tag-omeara","tag-review","tag-steve-holley","tag-the-lafayette"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/pic-13-scaled.jpg?fit=1928%2C2560&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5yMhl-m0B","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":94280,"url":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2026\/02\/henry-grace-launches-his-new-album-at-bush-hall\/","url_meta":{"origin":84605,"position":0},"title":"Henry Grace Launches His New Album At Bush Hall","author":"Steve Holley","date":"09\/02\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Back in March 2023, something happened that changed my life for the better. I booked tickets for a gig at O Meara in London to see an artist I hugely admire, Marie Naffah, who was supporting an artist I\u2019d never listened to, called Henry Grace. Sadly, Marie had to pull\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Album Of The Week"","block_context":{"text":"Album Of The Week","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/category\/music\/album-of-the-week\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Henry Grace at Bush Hall - Photo Credit: Steve Holley","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Henry-Grace-at-Bush-Hall-12-Photo-Credit-Steve-Holley.jpg?fit=904%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Henry-Grace-at-Bush-Hall-12-Photo-Credit-Steve-Holley.jpg?fit=904%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Henry-Grace-at-Bush-Hall-12-Photo-Credit-Steve-Holley.jpg?fit=904%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Henry-Grace-at-Bush-Hall-12-Photo-Credit-Steve-Holley.jpg?fit=904%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":77823,"url":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2022\/09\/ben-abraham-is-back-in-london-to-play-friendly-fire-at-lovely-venue-lafayette\/","url_meta":{"origin":84605,"position":1},"title":"Ben Abraham Is Back In London To Play \u2018Friendly Fire\u2019 At Lovely Venue, Lafayette","author":"Steve Holley","date":"14\/09\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Last week, almost a year to the day after his live performance at Omeara, Ben Abraham came back to London to play songs from his latest brilliant album, \u2018Friendly Fire\u2019, to an adoring audience who braved the pouring Autumn rain to fill Lafayette to see these hugely moving songs sung\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Concerts"","block_context":{"text":"Concerts","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/category\/music\/concerts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/IMG_20220908_003033_469.webp?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/IMG_20220908_003033_469.webp?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/IMG_20220908_003033_469.webp?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/IMG_20220908_003033_469.webp?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/IMG_20220908_003033_469.webp?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":72864,"url":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2021\/12\/an-acoustic-round-uk-tour-ft-jamie-lawson-gemma-hayes-richard-walters-laura-zocca\/","url_meta":{"origin":84605,"position":2},"title":"An Acoustic Round UK Tour Ft Jamie Lawson, Gemma Hayes, Richard Walters, & Laura Zocca","author":"Essentially Pop","date":"10\/12\/2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Critically acclaimed singer-songwriters Jamie Lawson, Gemma Hayes, Richard Walters and Laura Zocca join forces for a special acoustic round show, unlike any other gig you will go to next year.","rel":"","context":"In "Concerts"","block_context":{"text":"Concerts","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/category\/music\/concerts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/jamie-lawson.jpg?fit=1200%2C392&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/jamie-lawson.jpg?fit=1200%2C392&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/jamie-lawson.jpg?fit=1200%2C392&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/jamie-lawson.jpg?fit=1200%2C392&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/jamie-lawson.jpg?fit=1200%2C392&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":78221,"url":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2022\/10\/delta-dawn-lafayette-london-plays-host-to-australian-star-delta-goodrem\/","url_meta":{"origin":84605,"position":3},"title":"Delta Dawn: Lafayette London Plays Host To Australian Star Delta Goodrem","author":"Daniel John","date":"13\/10\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"London's Lafayette venue played host last night to Australia's darling, Delta Goodrem. Tickets for the show sold out within minutes of going on sale, proving Delta's impact. It's been a long time coming.","rel":"","context":"In "Concerts"","block_context":{"text":"Concerts","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/category\/music\/concerts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/image-5.png?fit=510%2C680&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":35605,"url":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2018\/05\/jamie-lawson-to-support-ed-sheeran-on-uk-eire-stadium-tour-and-releases-new-single-fall-into-me\/","url_meta":{"origin":84605,"position":4},"title":"Jamie Lawson To Support Ed Sheeran On UK\/Eire Stadium Tour And Releases New Single ‘Fall Into Me’","author":"Lisa Hafey","date":"02\/05\/2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Jamie Lawson has released his latest single, 'Fall Into Me', ahead of his mammoth suppport slot touring with Ed Sheeran around Ireland and the UK. The tour will take in 46 dates, including dates in Cork, Dublin, Manchester, Glasgow, and London, First concert is on May 4 at P\u00e1irc U\u00ed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Concerts"","block_context":{"text":"Concerts","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/category\/music\/concerts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/22008209_10155461245512247_2730324295476132654_n.jpg?fit=828%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/22008209_10155461245512247_2730324295476132654_n.jpg?fit=828%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/22008209_10155461245512247_2730324295476132654_n.jpg?fit=828%2C315&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/22008209_10155461245512247_2730324295476132654_n.jpg?fit=828%2C315&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":80457,"url":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2023\/03\/sophie-ellis-bextor-announces-london-album-release-show-lafayette-30th-june-2023\/","url_meta":{"origin":84605,"position":5},"title":"Sophie Ellis-Bextor Announces London Album Release Show, Lafayette, 30th June 2023","author":"Essentially Pop","date":"01\/03\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Sophie Ellis-Bextor has announced a special album release show at Lafayette in London on 30th June, in celebration of her recently announced new album \u2018HANA\u2019, out 2nd June on Cooking Vinyl.","rel":"","context":"In "Concerts"","block_context":{"text":"Concerts","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/category\/music\/concerts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-2.png?fit=625%2C883&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-2.png?fit=625%2C883&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-2.png?fit=625%2C883&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/34"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84605"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84605\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84620"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}