Jon Batiste is one of the most important musicians of our time. He brings impeccable musicianship, dynamic energy, and joyful passion to every performance; indeed, the multiple Grammy winner describes making music as a “spiritual practice,” and a Jon Batiste concert can, indeed feel like going to church. The young pianist, composer, bandleader, television personality, and civil rights activist was raised in the western New Orleans suburb of Kenner with an impressive musical lineage. His family includes Lionel Batiste of the Treme Brass Band, Milton Batiste of the Olympia Brass Band, and drummer Russell Batiste Jr. At the age of eight, young Jonathan played percussion and drums with his family's band, the Batiste Brothers Band. At 11 he switched to piano, and attended the vaunted St. Augustine High School and the New Orleans Center for the Arts (a classmate was Trombone Shorty). Batiste’s professional career flourished while he was still a student at Julliard. He released several albums and was involved in major projects around the world as a solo artist, as a collaborator, and with his band, Stay Human.
Some of his more endearing projects include recording albums live at New York’s Rubin Museum of Art and on the city’s subway trains, impromptu street performances Batiste calls “love riots” with Stay Human, and his work promoting fairness and civil rights, particularly after the George Floyd murder.
In 2015 Batiste was tapped by Stephen Colbert to serve as bandleader for “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," a role he held for seven years. Over the course of his career he has performed with a catalog-ful of today’s great musicians and prestige venues.
In 2020, Batiste, along with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, composed the soundtrack to the hit Pixar movie, “Soul,” with Batiste providing all the piano playing for the animated film and earning Academy, Golden Globe, Grammy, and BAFTA awards. In 2022, “Soul” and Batiste’s stellar album “We Are,” which features New Orleans artists including PJ Morton and the St. Augustine High School Marching 100, garnered a whopping 14 Grammy nominations and took home five statues, including Album of the Year. His latest release, “World Music Radio,” is gaining popular critical acclaim.
