Jon Batiste
Jonathan Michael Batiste (born November 11, 1986)[2] is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, bandleader, composer, and television personality.[3] He has recorded and performed with artists including Stevie Wonder, Prince, Willie Nelson, Lenny Kravitz, Ed Sheeran, Lana Del Rey, Roy Hargrove, Juvenile, and Mavis Staples. Batiste, with his band Stay Human,[4] appeared nightly as bandleader and musical director on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert from 2015 to 2022.[5][6]
This article is about the American musician. For the American military officer and consultant, see John Batiste. Not to be confused with Jean-Baptiste.
Jon Batiste
Jonathan Michael Batiste[1]
November 11, 1986
Metairie, Louisiana, U.S.[1]
- Singer
- songwriter
- bandleader
- multi-instrumentalist
- film composer
Vocals, piano, keyboards, melodica, guitar
1998–present
- Naht Jona
- Razor & Tie
- Concord
- Verve
- M.O.D. Technologies
- Blue Engine
- Tiger Turn
- Walt Disney
Batiste also serves as the music director of The Atlantic and the Creative Director of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. In 2020, he co-composed the score for the Pixar animated film Soul, for which he received an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award and a BAFTA Film Award (all shared with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross).[7] Batiste has garnered 5 Grammy Awards from 20 nominations, including an Album of the Year win for his album We Are (2021).[8]
In 2023, Batiste featured in the documentary film American Symphony which records the process of Batiste composing his first symphony.[9]
Early life and education[edit]
Jon Batiste was born in Metairie, Louisiana, to a Catholic family.[1][10] He grew up in Kenner, Louisiana.[2] Batiste is a member of a New Orleans musical dynasty, the Batiste family, that includes Lionel Batiste of the Treme Brass Band, Milton Batiste of the Olympia Brass Band, and Russell Batiste Jr.[11][12] At the age of 8, he played percussion and drums with his family's band, the Batiste Brothers Band.[13] At the age of 11, he switched to piano at his mother's suggestion and took classical piano lessons from local piano teacher, Shirley Herstein, every Saturday from ages 11 to 18.[14] Batiste further developed his piano skills by transcribing songs from video games such as Street Fighter Alpha, Final Fantasy VII and Sonic the Hedgehog.[15]
At 17, Batiste released his debut album Times in New Orleans. He attended St. Augustine High School and New Orleans Center for Creative Arts with Trombone Shorty in New Orleans and graduated in 2004. He then went on to attend the Juilliard School, receiving a Bachelor of Music in 2008 and a Master of Music in 2011, both in jazz studies.[16] While at Juilliard, he released his second album, Live in New York: At the Rubin Museum of Art. By the end of 2006, Batiste had been a featured performer in South Africa, London, Lisbon, Spain, Paris and the United States.[17]
Activism and philanthropy[edit]
Batiste was born into a family active in the struggle against racial segregation in the United States;[38] his grandfather David Gauthier was president of the Louisiana Postal Workers Union, involved in the 1968 labor strike sponsored by the Memphis, Tennessee, Department of Public Works for higher wages and safer working conditions.[40]
The singer is a supporter of civil rights, the fight against racism, participating publicly in numerous demonstrations, including the marches promoted by the Black Lives Matter movement.[41] Following the murder of George Floyd in June 2020, Batiste organized peaceful protests in New York City against police brutality in the United States.[42]
Through the single "We Are", he supports the Equal Justice Initiative of attorney and activist Bryan Stevenson. Batiste is also among the sponsors of several initiatives, including Innocence Project, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and The Legacy Museum.[43][38]
Personal life[edit]
Batiste is married to journalist, musician and best-selling author Suleika Jaouad. The two met as teenagers at band camp.[44] On April 3, 2022, the couple revealed in an interview on CBS News Sunday Morning that they had been married in a private ceremony at home in February 2022.[45]
Raised in the Catholic Church, Batiste continues to identify as a Christian, and has been outspoken about his faith.[46][47][48]
Jon Batiste discography
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11
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3
