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When I was studying composition
with the famed music teacher
Nadia Boulanger, one of the many
lessons she imparted upon me
was that “an artist can never be
more or less than they are as a
human being.” So, it is no great
surprise to me that Jon Batiste—
now the proud owner of five
Grammy Awards and an Oscar—
has found all of the success that
he has so early in his career.
I first became aware of Jon’s
extraordinary talent the year
before he landed the gig as
bandleader and musical director
of The Late Show With Stephen Col-
bert. When I heard that he had New
Orleans roots, it all made perfect
sense to me. As the birthplace
of jazz and the blues—the music
that the world has adopted as its
Esperanto—New Orleans holds
a special and sacred place in our
culture. Jon has a particularly
keen understanding of that rich
cultural history and an awareness
of the importance of carrying
that history forward. He has
taken all of that foundational
knowledge about our music
and made it his own, unafraid
to stretch himself as an artist
and continually evolve.
What I love most about Jon
as an artist and human being,
though, is that he has handled
his success with grace, and his
creativity with humility. It is all of
these attributes that will allow
him to continue to grow and
accomplish all that he sets out to.
And I, for one, am excited for the
future that he has ahead of him.Jones is a Grammy Award–winning
record producer and musicianJon Batiste
Graceful talent
BY QUINCY JONES