NASHVILLE, TN — Jon Batiste is both a prolific and extremely popular art-ist, as well as an extremely versatile one. Batiste, who’ll be appearing October 1 at the Opry House along with Diana Silvers and special guest Andra Day, took a surprising direction with his eighth studio LP “Beethoven Blues (Batiste Piano Series, Vol. 1).” It was released last November on Verve Records/Interscope and was the first in a series of projected solo piano recordings. It spotlighted Batiste’s interpolations of some of Beethoven’s most iconic works, reimagined through an expansive lens. It was the follow-up to 2023’s “World Mu- sic Radio.” That one included collaborations with Jon Bellion, Lana Del Rey, Lil’ Wayne and others. It earned , five Grammy nominations, including Album of the Year. Batiste began his first-ever headlining tour, “Uneasy Tour: Purifying the Airwaves for the People,” the following year.
Last year Batiste also expanded his activities in film scoring in Jason Reitman’s “Saturday Night.” This depicted the chaotic 90 minutes leading up to the first broadcast of “Saturday Night Live” in 1975. The score combined jazz, classical, and contemporary elements. Batiste composed and produced the music live on the soundstage in front of the cast and crew. He was also the subject of Matthew Heineman’s 2023 documentary “American Symphony,” which was released on Netflix in partnership with Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground. Batiste and Grammy winner Dan Wilson penned the song “It Never Went Away” for the film, which earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song and two Grammy nominations.
However many people known Batiste as being the bandleader and musical director of CBS’ “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” from 2015-2022. His 2021 LP “We Are received 11 Grammy nominations across seven different categories, a Grammy first. It won five that year, including Album of the Year. He’s also earned additional Grammy nominations for “We Are In 2018, and “Chronology of A Dream: Live At the Village Vanguard” and “”Med- itations,” both of those in 2020. Batiste won an Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA, NAACP Image and Critic’s Choice Awards as a composer and performer of the music for the Disney/Pixar film “Soul.” He has truly proven himself to be an elite artist in numerous ways throughout his still thriving career.
Batiste Plays America with Diana Silvers and special guest Andra Day at the Opry House, 600 Miles Drive, October 1 at 7:30 p.m.
Copyright TNTRIBUNE 2025. All rights reserved.
