Born into a long lineage of Louisiana musicians, Jon Batiste is a globally celebrated musician, educator, bandleader and television personality whose musical skill, artistic vision and exuberant charisma have garnered him the well-deserved title of “crowned prince of jazz.”
Jon is recognized for his originality, jaw-dropping talent and dapper sense of style. Jon effortlessly transitions from commanding the piano with the virtuosic skill to soulfully crooning to wailing on the “harmonaboard” (a hybrid of a harmonica and keyboard) to curating unique “social music” experiences all over the world, whether solo or with his band Stay Human.
Rhododendrites/ Wikimedia | Jon Batiste was the name on everyone's lips after the Grammy Awards 2022
He is a musical genius who delicately balances a demanding schedule on screen and on stage, which includes his role as Bandleader and Musical Director with The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to recently honoring Philip Glass with a performance of “Opening” from “Glassworks” at the 41st Annual Kennedy Center Honors.
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). As of 2022, Batiste has garnered five Grammy Awards from 14 nominations, including winning Album of the Year for his album We Are.
Marriage with Suleika Jaouad
TED Conference/ Flickr | Aside from being a successful writer, Jaouad is the creator of Isolation Journals
On Sunday, Batiste took home five Grammy Awards, including the biggest award of the night, winning album of the year for We Are, and beating out major pop stars like Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Lil Nas X, Doja Cat, and Olivia Rodrigo. Talking to CBS Morning, Jaouad shared that the couple, who have been together for about eight years, wanted to officially become man and wife since the week they started dating but really sealed the deal after she was diagnosed with cancer for a second time.
Batiste tied the knot with his longtime partner Suleika Jaouad in a secret ceremony in February just before the bestselling author went in for a bone marrow transplant following a leukaemia diagnosis. Because of the impromptu nature of their “tiny, beautiful, little ceremony,” the author said that they had to forego a few traditional elements, including exchanging formal wedding rings. “We used bread ties,” she said.
TED Conference/ Flickr | Suleika Jaouad is an American writer, advocate, and motivational speaker
Batiste added that his new bride's latest struggles with leukemia are not going to “interrupt the plan that we have. This is just a bump in the road.” He went on to explain that their marriage is “an act of defiance.
The darkness will try to overtake you but just turn on the light. Focus on the light. Hold onto the light.” The 33-year-old author further shared that her diagnosis was not the reason behind Batiste finally proposing to her and that he had been planning it for a year.
