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Berlin (dpa) - pianist, singer, band leader, film composer, TV entertainer - and soon a superstar of (Afro-) American music beyond all niches and drawers: Jon Batiste is just about to take off.
A Golden Globe that has already been won in 2021 could soon be followed by an Oscar - and that's not all.
With his new album “We Are” (Verve / Universal), the 34-year-old is celebrating no less than a 38-minute high mass for black pop culture.
The piano jazz familiar from Batiste is only one element among many in the 13 tracks - plus soul in elegant Motown guise, funk, hip-hop, blues, gospel and R&B.
It's a bit reminiscent of the great 1970s albums by Stevie Wonder such as “Songs In The Key Of Life”, the still infallible Prince of the 80s or the fan-driven dance floor hits from Earth Wind & Fire (in the rousing “Show Me The Way »).
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“In the end, the music is genre-independent, while at the same time it is very deeply rooted in my history and the history of this country,” says Jon Batiste about the comprehensive approach of “We Are”.
And he adds: "I have the feeling that it goes far beyond what can still be classified in a jazz context."
Behind “We Are” there is a unifying claim not only in the album title and in the mix of styles: Batiste brings together African-American forms of music in a virtuoso manner, and it also appeals to the minds of his listeners.
The rap slang of “Whachutalkinbout” is reminiscent of Barack Obama's touching “Amazing Grace” singing for victims of racism in Charleston.
And the all-round musician, dressed like a preacher on the cover, proves “Black Consciousness” again and again.
This album is extremely eclectic, entertaining, and thought-provoking.
Batiste, born in 1986 in the US southern state of Louisiana, is the founder and front man of the band Stay Human, with whom he has been the musical director of Stephen Colbert's "Late Show" for a long time.
He is the creative director of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem and had his big breakthrough in 2020 as co-composer of the wonderful soundtrack for the Pixar film "Soul", which has the best Oscar chances.
Batiste also recently released the duet “It's Alright” with the British Celeste, who is also just about to become a superstar.
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So «We Are» and the entire performance by Jon Batiste have all the ingredients to push this musician out of jazz circles into a new orbit.
Especially since he is very well networked in the US artist scene.
If Batiste had wanted, there would probably be even more stars on the album - alongside soul icon Mavis Staples (“Mavis” / “Freedom”), Grammy-winning gospel soul man PJ Morton and jazz-funk trombone player Trombone Shorty (both in “Boy Hood”) and writer Zadie Smith as a guest singer (“Show Me The Way.” In this context: the legendary music producer Quincy Jones (88) wrote the liner notes for “We Are”.
A great success.
Jon Batiste is unstoppable - and as an Afro-American, politically thinking musician, he fits perfectly into this time of new departure.
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© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210325-99-964678 / 5
Website Jon Batiste