Austin City Limits (ACL) is thrilled to present one of America’s most versatile musicians, Jon Batiste, in a dazzling must-watch hour. The New Orleans bandleader and composer, an Oscar and Emmy-winning musician, delivers a high- energy tour-de-force backed by an 18-piece band, performing highlights from his soulful album We Are. The new installment premieres October 16 8p.m. CT as part of the series new Season 47. Despite the challenges facing live music during the past year, ACL is proud to deliver a new season of performances for viewers, all recorded at ACL’s studio home in Austin, Texas in 2021, in front of limited live audiences. The program continues its extraordinary run as the longest-running music television show in history, providing viewers a front-row seat to the best in live performance for a remarkable 47 years. ACL airs weekly on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings) and full episodes are made available to stream online at pbs.org/austincitylimits immediately following the initial broadcast.
Jon Batiste mixes his own brand of New Orleans jazz with soul, funk, R&B, gospel and hip-hop in an hourlong celebration of pure joy. Batiste may be best known as a television personality as the bandleader and musical director for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, but the scion of a New Orleans musical dynasty lights up the stage in a performance for the ages in his first-ever ACL appearance. In a love letter to his Southern roots and heritage, Batiste takes viewers on a journey through Black American music history from ragtime to trap. Taking the stage in a red leather suit and Stetson, he is backed by a 10- piece band for the ecstatic “We Are,” a celebratory anthem of the African diaspora and the title track to his acclaimed 2021 album. The leader’s contagious joy is on full display throughout the performance as he reveals, “This is not a concert for me—this is a spiritual practice.”
New Orleans’ Hot 8 Brass Band joins the party with a second line groove as the energy level soars and Batiste descends into the crowd. The showman thrills as he dances across the stage, moving seamlessly from piano, his main instrument, to guitar, saxophone, and melodica. Batiste is on guitar, leading the 18-piece band for the soulful raveup “Tell the Truth,” before moving to piano and ending the number on his knees center stage. “Boyhood,” a fond ode to growing up in the Big Easy, leads into a gorgeous snippet of Bill Withers “Lean On Me.” The unstoppable Batiste delivers a fascinating medley at the piano, playfully working in everything from classical to ragtime, demonstrating his remarkable genre-defying skills. A frequent collaborator, Batiste is joined by Austin guitar great Gary Clark Jr. for the slowburn bayou lament “Cry,” before closing the hour with a stunning solo finale at the piano featuring the ballad, “Don’t Stop,” from 2018’s Hollywood Africans.
“In my over 40 years with Austin City Limits, I have never seen a performance so joyful, so inspiring, so energizing, so spiritual as Jon Batiste. It was a magical night,” said executive producer Terry Lickona. “People were laughing, singing, crying, and of course dancing. Jon Batiste is a superstar!”
The set list is as follows:
WE ARE
I NEED YOU
LOVE RIOT MOMENT
BOYHOOD
WHATCHUTALKINBOUT
TELL THE TRUTH
TELL THE TRUTH reprise
PIANO MEDLEY
CRY
FREEDOM
DON’T STOP
