This Hoosier is using his music to show his appreciation for southern Indiana and Louisville.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Music brings Henry Míles back to family gatherings where he would dance and sing to all different kinds of artists. He grew up over the river in Indiana and first started writing poems into music at 12 years old.
“Music I feel like is like a diary,” Míles said. “I make it where you can dance to it because that’s what bachata is. It still has that beat where it might be sad, but you can still dance.”
He modeled his early music off his uncles who are rappers, but then bachata music caught his attention. The music spoke to him the way he wants it to speak to others.
“You can feel everything that they’re saying and that’s basically what it means to me as being a bachata artist, like I want you to feel like what that song’s speaking,” Míles said.
Míles has five nominations for the Latin Music Awards of Kentucky, held at 4th Street Live on September 20. Míles said his nominations are Best Latin Artist, Best New Latin Artist, Best Latin Album, Best Latin Single, and Best Latin Music Video.
He acknowledged his career would benefit by him moving to a bigger city, but when asked why he stays, Míles said he wants to give back to where he’s from. He feels like he’s already doing that with his music, like with his song So Tu Batchero, which was just released in July.
The music video features well-known Louisville backdrops, like the Falls of the Ohio, the silhouette of Louisville’s skyline, and Noche Mexican BBQ restaurant on Bardstown Road.
“[People will] be like, ‘Oh, we know that place.’ or ‘We were just there.’,” Míles said. “And they can enjoy music at the same time as seeing what that place actually means, what these places around us actually stand for.”
Míles is using his music to highlight his appreciation for his community.
