Tyler Henry finds himself on the receiving end of a gaggle of questions that have stumped humanity for centuries.
“What happens to us when we pass on?”
“Do we still have a personality?”
“What is the ‘the other side’ like?”
Through it all, the engaging 22-year-old clairvoyant and star of E! Network’s Hollywood Medium with Tyler Henry finds those inquires about life beyond the here and now — and that realm itself — positively fascinating.
“What I know for a fact is that consciousness continues on,” Henry says. “The essence of who are continues to evolve through the process of ‘moving on.’
“I really don’t claim to understand everything of what happens on the other side, or what that entails,” he adds, “but through this work, I have found that when we transition [in death], we go through a process in which our ego is stripped and we let go of a lot of those human emotions; that process allows us to become a part of something larger.”
Deep concepts. Meaty words. And America can’t stop eating it all up.
Henry’s spiritual path emerged quite unexpectedly. Back in 2006, when his grandmother was terminally ill with cancer, he began experiencing strong intuitive hunches that morphed into significant visions that proved to be true. Flash-forward a decade or so, and Henry generates major buzz when he works with A-list celebrities to communicate with their loved ones on the other side in his hit show, which has been renewed for a fourth season.
Connecting with the deceased loved ones of Khloe Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Ellen DeGeneres, Portia De Rossi, Eva Longoria, Melissa Joan Hart, and LaToya Jackson, and sharing their messages from beyond, has certainly helped elevate Henry’s own celebrity — ironically, he was never an entertainment junkie when he grew up in Central California — but he says his overall mission is to help bring people closure, comfort, and proof that consciousness transcends physical death.
PHOTOGRAPH BY YU TSAI
Tyler Henry
The clairvoyant chronicled those ideals in his memoir, Between Two Worlds, but local audiences will experience it first-hand when his national tour, 5 Life Lessons I’ve Learned From the Departed, hits Morongo Casino Resort & Spa Oct. 26. The show finds Henry discussing his gift and how communicating with the other side effects his everyday life.
The takeaway from the show is universal.
“It’s the idea that we are all interconnected,” Henry says, “and, that it’s important that we all see one another and ourselves in each other, that we see beyond our differences — see the soul commonality we all share.”
Michael Corbett, Henry’s manager, who has owned a home in Palm Springs for 20 years, is quick to point out Henry’s mystique intrigues all generations. Local audiences, he notes, will resonate with the experience of loss and curiosity about “the other side.”
That goes for Corbett, too.
“Working with Tyler has been very healing for me,” Corbett says. “I have lost many dear friends over the years and my mom had recently passed away. But after watching Tyler work, I now have a completely different perspective on death and dying — really knowing that, as Tyler says, ‘our loved ones never really leave us.’ ”
“It’s one thing to be an actor
or a singer who may be
inundated with the
‘entertainment world,’ and I am
to some extent, but the nature
of what I do is
emotional and vulnerable."
— Tyler Henry
So, what does Henry actually experience when he connects with another realm?
“Basically, any of my senses are fair game for the information that wants to come through,” he explains. “I might hear sounds or get a feeling. In some cases, I may even get a smell. My job is really to interpret all the changes that are happening in my body and determine what the messages are.
“Sometimes it is very subtle, sometimes very clear,” he adds. “Sometimes a tingling feeling to a full-on vision that’s like a movie.”
When asked how he maintains a sense of groundedness while repeatedly being thrust into the unpredictable business of “show” (and tell), Henry’s soft-spoken nature reveals something sweet and rare — humility.
“It’s one thing to be an actor or a singer who may be inundated with the ‘entertainment world,’ and I am to some extent,” he says, “but the nature of what I do is emotional and vulnerable. It gives me a constant perspective. I may go into work and it may be a glamorous setting, and then a person comes in who has experienced loss and I am reminded of how fragile life can be. I’ve learned about the importance of making the best of each moment.”
Tyler Henry’s 5 Life Lessons I’ve Learned from The Departed unfolds at 9 p.m. Oct. 26 at Morongo Casino Resort & Spa, 49500 Seminole Drive, Cabazon. For more information, or to order tickets, visit morongocasinoresort.com.