Jon Batiste Secures Major Wins at Grammys

Last night was the 2022 Grammy awards, with appearances, not mention victories, by many mainstays of the current music industry, including Billie Eilish, Silk Sonic, Olivia Rodrigo, and more. One of the biggest winners of the evening, however, is undoubtedly Jon Batiste, who took home a whopping five Grammy awards, several of which were the most coveted ones.

Batiste, who was nominated for 11 awards, won best American roots performance, best American roots song, best score soundtrack for visual media, and best music video for “Freedom.” His biggest victory, though, is album of the year for his work on We Are. Not only is this another notch on Batiste’s continuously excellent career, but it’s also a monumental occasion, as Batiste is the first Black artist to take this award since Herbie Hancock’s victory for River: The Joni Letters in 2008.

.@JonBatiste won Album of the Year at the 2022 #GRAMMYs https://t.co/OhakZvpdXi

— billboard (@billboard) April 4, 2022

“I just put my head down and work on the craft everyday … It’s more than entertainment for me, it’s a spiritual practice,” Batiste said in his acceptance speech. “Be you, that’s it.” He went on to say that there isn’t really such a thing as a “best” song or album, and that “it’s like a song or an album is made and it almost has a radar to find a person when they need it the most.”