Meet Super Bowl 2025 performer Jon Batiste: everything there is to know
The Oscar winner will sing the national anthem at the big game
As theĀ 2025 Super Bowl kicks off in New Orleans and the nation watchesĀ the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles in what is sure to be a riveting game, a slew of incredible performers are slated to showcase their talent atĀ Caesars Superdome.
Before rap superstarĀ Kendrick Lamar takes to the stage for the Halftime Show, Louisiana native Jon Batiste will prove his singing chops with a rendition of the national anthem.
The Grammy winner will perform alongside Lauren Daigle and Trombone Shorty, who will sing "America the Beautiful", and Ledisi, who will lend herself to "Lift Every Voice and Sing".
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Speaking toĀ Entertainment Tonight in the lead up to the big game, Jon shared that he couldn't be happier to be part of the Super Bowl. "I'm excited to figure out an arrangement that lasts the test of time and I look forward to sharing it," he said.
"The week before is when I'll just finally start to finalize it, and then it's gonna fly."
With all eyes on Jon ahead of what is sure to be an incredible show, joinĀ HELLO! as we discover everything there is to know about the critically acclaimed star.
God-given talent
Jon grew up in Louisiana surrounded by prolific musicians
Jon was born on November 11, 1986, in Metairie, Louisiana, and grew up close by in Kenner. His family is filled with prolific musicians, so it comes as no surprise that he studied at Juilliard after completing high school.
It was here that he met his future bandmates, forming the group Stay Human with them and performing on the streets of New York together.
Stay Human went on to become the house band on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert from 2015 until 2022.
A critically-acclaimed career
Jon and his band were the in-house performers on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert for seven years
The 38-year-old has worked with everyone from Stevie Wonder and Prince to Alicia Keys and Ed Sheeran, and is one of the most critically-acclaimed musicians of the moment.
His recent album, Beethoven Blues, rocketed to number one on the classics charts; the project saw Jon reinvent several of the iconic composer's works.
After composing the score for the Pixar film Soul in 2020, he garnered Oscar, Grammy and Golden Globe awards, and won the prestigious Album of the Year Grammy in 2022 for We Are.
He has won seven Grammy Awards
"Man, it's so much; I'm still processing," he toldĀ Stephen Colbert after his incredible win. "First, I thought the fact that my family was there with me to witness that is incredible. It's incredible. Just so much went into that moment: piano lessons, some civil rights marches."
He took home two Grammy Awards in February for Best Music Film and Best Song Written for Visual Media following the release of his documentary, American Symphony, which followed his wife's battle with leukemia.
Love and heartbreak
Jon's wife Suleika has been diagnosed with cancer three times
Jon met his wife,Ā Suleika Jaouad, when they were just teenagers at band camp. After falling out of touch, they reconnected 12 years later when she was first diagnosed with leukemia at 22 years old.
The musician and the journalist married in 2022, just after her cancer came back for a second time in December 2021. "When I got the biopsy results, it felt like a sinkhole opened up and swallowed everything,"Ā she shared following the diagnosis.
"Within 72 hours, Jon and I packed our things, found friends to care for Oscar and Loulou, gave copies of our keys to our neighbor, canceled work and cleared our schedules, and were on our way to the hospital in New York City."
Sadly, Suleika announced that her cancer had come back for a third time in December 2024, prompting Jon's absence from the 2025 Grammy Awards. "We couldn't make it to the ceremony but we're beaming love from our couch to yours, and sending gratitude to all who made this film possible," the pair wrote on Instagram following Jon's win.