Singer-songwriter Haiden Henderson talks 'hell of a good time'

By Tiara Starks

Photos by Ashley Osborn

Haiden Henderson just wants you to have a good time. The singer-songwriter hails from southern California and pursued a music career during the pandemic. Since then, he has built up a substantial fanbase that values the sometimes dark-perspective on dating and his commitment to staying authentic.

His most recent release, “hell of a good time,” has already proven to be a fan favorite. The official music video, or should we say short film, for “hell of a good time” has more than 20,000 views on YouTube.

Henderson offered up his reasoning behind why he chose the title “hell of a good time.”

“I wanted something immediately fun off the bat,” he explained. “I, at the time, had a crush on a girl who was as close to the devil as I felt a person could be. She had long, acrylic, sharp nails, and she had intense lip filler and sometimes dressed gothic. Given my familial history and my childhood, that’s my type sometimes.”

Henderson doesn’t shy away from speaking about his vision for his music videos, which he humbly refers to as “short films.” The cinematic quality of his videos make for more than just “eye candy” for his listeners, but also illustrate the message of the song and provide a deeper understanding of the artist’s psyche. If you look at the single “Sorry to Your Next Ex,” its lyrics speak to anyone’s reality: “Somebody will love you/But will they love like I used to?” Yet, when you watch the video, you see a very specific perspective that only Henderson can speak to. His creative direction is a great example of an artist providing a multi-sensory experience for a song.

“I've experimented with different types of music videos over time, and you can see, even for my first EP, the ‘Sorry to Your Next Ex’ music video is a short film-esque thing as well. I think I'm just going to start calling them official short films because I think it's just a fun little thing to deviate from [the norm],” Henderson said. “That song sounds like, ‘I think I'm the best, and you suck, good luck replacing me,’ but then you watch the music video and I'm singing that from the front yard of my girlfriend's house because I just got thrown out, and I'm surrounded by all my belongings. It adds this much more insecure and humble perspective, which is where the song is coming from for me.”

He also spoke candidly about how the nature of the industry can be taxing on an artist, saying, “It takes 10 years to get a rocket in the sky and feel like you actually contributed something.”

Before Henderson decided to pursue a career in the industry full time, he considered a career in aerospace engineering.

“I studied aerospace engineering in school, and I was interning at SpaceX,” he said. “When the pandemic hit, I got the opportunity to just sit at home and do what I loved doing...I was living in the back of my truck for my first year of college because I couldn't afford rent. I created this ‘Hannah Montana’ life in my head for myself, where I would go back and I would play, and I would feel very fulfilled.”

In regards to Henderson’s status online, he’s very humble about his notoriety, which is refreshing in the age where everyone and anyone can be a celebrity and take the attention for granted.

It can be said that live performance is the purest form of connection so it makes sense that Henderson prefers connecting with his fans by performing live and sees it as a motivating factor as he embarks on the sometimes-grueling experience of touring.

“TikTok is a video game, and the internet's a video game. When I would play it for people live, and I was focus-grouping in real life and seeing grown men cry to [the song] ‘Kill the Kid.’ Really, really powerful things. I was like, ‘Oh, this is what music is. It's about emotional connection.’”

It’s clear that Henderson has successfully established that connection with his audience and simultaneously thrives on it. It’s a feeling that most emerging artists fail to secure with their listeners in the beginning stages of their careers. For Henderson, it just signifies that there are more ways than one to explore the real emotions that come about from both broken and healed relationships and how others can feel a sense of relief and power when they hear his music.

Fans of Henderson will be excited to learn that the LAVA/Republic Records artist is planning to release a ton of new music this year.

“I'm going to be dropping another 10 songs this year on top of the ‘Choke on My Heart’ EP,” he revealed. “Just going to be consistent releases, playing live as often as humanly possible because it's my favorite thing to do and hopefully putting up some more headline shows for me to do my own shows as well because those are the best.”