Jon Batiste's Grammy acceptance speech is empowering. Image Source: The Times of Israel
Jon Batiste who is the bandleader and musical director of the Late Show with Stephen Colbert has so much to celebrate. The singer recently won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year for 'We Are', at the 64th annual Grammy Awards hosted on Sunday at Las Vegas beating artists including Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Doja Cat, Billie Eilish, H.E.R, Lil Nas X, Olivia Rodrigo, Taylor Swift and Kanye West.
One thing that caught everyone’s attention was the acceptance speech of the singer that not only received an applause but also a standing ovation at the end. Batiste said while accepting the award that according to him there is no best musician, artist, dance or actor because the creative arts are subjective and the art tend to reach people at a point in their lives when they need it the most. It could be a song, an album or any form of art which is made find its way to the person who needs it the most.
The singer continued by thanking god and said that he just puts his head down and work on his craft every single day. Jon Batiste added that he loves music and has been playing music since he was a little boy and it’s not just entertainment for him but a spiritual practice to be involved with music. The Grammy winner added that there are so many people who went into making the album ‘We Are’ and went onto thank his grandfather, nephew and father. The artist who looked seemingly proud of hi accomplishments concluded that every single artist who were nominated for Allbum of the Year award should know that he had out-of-body experinces with their music and he honors them with the award he just won.
Jon Batiste added that the award is for artists, real musicians and hopes that they will continue to keep making music. The singer also secured the Grammy for Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song for ‘Cry’, Best Music Video for ‘Freedom’ and Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media for ‘Soul’.
With his win for Album of the Year, Jon Batiste becomes the first Black artist to win the Album of the Year award at the Grammys in fourteen years since Herbie Hancock won the award in 2008 for his exceptional work in ‘River: The Joni Letters’. During the ceremony the artist also performed his successful song ‘Freedom’.
Earlier this week, Jon Batiste and author Suleika Jaouad revealed during an interview with CBS NEWS that the couple secretly married and decided to do it a night before Suleika Jaouad’s bone marrow transplant surgery. Suleika Jaouad is a leukemia survivor who added that her cancer had come back and was agreessive this time which required a bone marrow transplant. Talking about that Jon Batiste added that the darkness will try to overtake you but just turn on the light, focus on the light and hold onto it.
The newly married couple shared that they did not have wedding bands so they used bread ties instead and Suleika Jaouad clarified that Jon had made it very clear to her that he was not proposing to her because of the diagnosis and the ring had taken him a year to design and the diagnose of her cancer would not change a single thing but makes it even more clear for him to know that he wants to commit for them to be together. Suleika Jaouad went onto explain that it was absurd because there were nurses around, surgeos and catheter was placed in her chest. She added that it was an intimate, private wedding which was perfect.
Congratulations to Jon Batiste on his Grammy wins and the wedding!
