world music

Just two years after releasing his Grammy-winning album We Are, cross-genre savant Jon Batiste is gearing up to unleash his next record upon the world. On Wednesday, (June 28), the multi-hyphenate took to Twitter to reveal that his new studio album, titled World Music Radio, is slated for an Aug. 18 release — and will feature collaborations with Lana Del Rey, Lil Wayne, Kenny G and more.
“World Music Radio is a concept album that takes place in the interstellar regions of the universe,” Batiste wrote on Twitter. “The listener is led through the album by an interstellar traveling griot named Billy Bob Bo Bob, who takes you sonically all around the world at the speed of light.”

Alongside his announcement of the album’s title and release date, Batiste also debuted the official visualizer for the set’s lead single, “Calling Your Name.” “I created this album with a feeling of liberation in my life and a renewed sense of exploration of my personhood, my craft and of the world around me unlike anything I had ever felt before,” mused Batiste.

In addition to Del Rey, Lil Wayne, and Kenny G, the album will also feature collaborations with Jon Bellion, Fireboy DML, J.I.D., NewJeans and more. World Music Radio — which is executive produced by Batiste, Bellion and Ryan Lynn — is certainly a star-studded affair. According to the press release, Batiste’s purpose for the new album is to explore the idea that all music is “world music,” and forge an international, cross-cultural community through different kinds of popular music from different regions around the world.

Two years ago, Batiste made history as the first Black artist to win the Grammy for Album of the Year in 14 years when he triumphed in the category for his genre-spanning We Are. He won four other awards that night, adding a handful of trophies to a mantle that already boasts an Academy Award for Best Original Score thanks to his work on 2020’s Soul alongside Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross of Nine Inch Nails.

Batiste has landed two titles on the Billboard 200: 2014’s Social Music (No. 134, as Jon Batiste & Stay Human) and 2021’s We Are (No. 25).

See his World Music Radio announcement and listen to “Calling Your Name” below.

World Music Radio is a concept album that takes place in the interstellar regions of the universe. The listener is led through the album by an interstellar traveling griot named Billy Bob Bo Bob, who takes you sonically all around the world at the speed of light. pic.twitter.com/mB7Z57dCm5— jon batiste (@JonBatiste) June 28, 2023