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We Are
Studio album by Jon Batiste
Released	March 19, 2021 (2021-03-19)
Recorded	2019–2020
Genre	R&B jazz soul pop hip hop
Length	38:01
Label	Verve
Producer	Jon Batiste Kizzo David Pimentel
Jon Batiste chronology
Meditations (2020) We Are (2021) World Music Radio (2023)
Singles from We Are
"We Are" Released: June 12, 2020 "I Need You" Released: January 22, 2021 "Cry" Released: February 12, 2021

We Are ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Albumism
AllMusic
Rolling Stone
The Spill Magazine

We Are (stylized in all caps) is the sixth studio album by Jon Batiste. It was released on Verve Records on March 19, 2021. In April 2022, We Are won Album of the Year at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards; it earned Batiste nine nominations in total, with five wins.

Following the 64th Annual Grammy Awards, We Are reached its peak at number 25 on the US Billboard 200 with 18,000 album equivalent units.

Background

Batiste began working on the album in late 2019, making it in his dressing room over six days in September and finishing it by mid-2020. While largely written and recorded prior to the events of 2020, the album's lyrical and thematic content reflects such events as the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and his involvement in 2020, leading Black Lives Matter protests in New York after the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

On June 12, 2020, he released the single "We Are", featuring the band from his New Orleans alma mater, the St. Augustine High School Marching 100.

As part of Record Store Day 2020, Batiste released a limited edition EP titled We Are: Roots & Traditions.

The album also features Mavis Staples, Zadie Smith, PJ Morton, and Trombone Shorty.

Speaking to Atwood Magazine, Batiste described We Are as "a representation of genreless music that's just about the story" and "a culmination of my life to this point".

Batiste released a deluxe edition of the album on October 15, 2021.

Awards and nominations

Grammy Awards

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jon Batiste, except where noted

All tracks are written by Jon Batiste, except where noted

Personnel

Musicians

• Jon Batiste – vocals, piano, upright piano, Fender Rhodes electric piano, Wurlitzer electric piano, keyboards, organ, barrel organ, clavinet, Mellotron, 8 bit synth, Kawai synth, synth strings, guitar, alto saxophone, bass, Moog bass, synth bass, drums, drum machine, drum programming, cowbell, tambourine, bongos, theremin, producer, arranger, composer
• Craig Adams – conductor, organ
• David Gauthier – vocals
• Braedon Gautier – vocals
• Brennan Gautier – vocals
• Gospel Soul Children – vocals
• Tori Kelly – vocals
• David Pimentel – drums, producer, recording
• Autumn Rowe – composer, vocals
• Nate Smith – drums
• St. Augustine High School Marching 100 – brass band
• Cory Wong – guitar
• Sam Yahel – organ
• Mavis Staples – spoken word
• Zadie Smith – vocals
• PJ Morton – vocals
• Trombone Shorty – trombone
• Robert Randolph – pedal steel guitar
• Steve Jordan – drums
• Steve McEwan – acoustic guitar, composer
• Endea Owens – double bass
• Jahaan Sweet – composer
• Michelle Ross – violinist
• Louis Cato – guitar
• Joe Saylor – tambourine
• Emily King – vocals
• Roberta Freeman – vocals
• Carol Hatchett – vocals
• Zach Cooper – composer
• Vic Dimotsis – composer
• Eric Frederic – composer
• Sunny Levine – composer
• Hot 8 Brass Band – brass band
• Nick Waterhouse - producer, guitar

Technical

• Russell Elevado – recording
• Misha Kachkachishvili – recording
• Kizzo – composer, producer, recording
• Emerson Mancini – mastering engineer
• Manny Marroquin – mixing
• Marc Whitmore – recording, mixing
• Alex Williams – recording
• Karla Cordova – album art
• Suleika Jaouad – photography
• Quincy Jones – liner notes
• Ricky Reed – mixing
• Ryan Lynn – co executive producer
• Ken Oriole - recording
• John Muller – engineer
• Gavin Paddock - engineer, mix engineer
• David Andersen - second engineer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

1. Corcoran, Patrick (March 25, 2021). "Jon Batiste Delivers Infectious Slice of Uplifting Soul with We Are". Albumism. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
2. Collar, Matt. "We Are - Jon Batiste". AllMusic. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
3. "Rolling Stone - April 2021". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
4. Harris, Gerrod. "Spill Album Review: Jon Batiste - We Are". The Spill Magazine. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
5. ^ "Interview: Jon Batiste Dives into His Inspiring, Genreless New Album We Are'". Atwood Magazine. March 19, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
6. "Jon Batiste". Grammy.com. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
7. Caulfield, Keith (April 12, 2022). "Jon Batiste, Silk Sonic, Billie Eilish & More See Sales Bumps After 2022 Grammys". Billboard. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
8. Hughes, Hilary (March 19, 2021). "Jon Batiste riffs on the moment with We Are". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
9. Smith, Sophie (June 12, 2020). "Hear Jon Batiste's Anthemic New Single, 'We Are'". U Discover Music. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
10. Micucci, Matt (November 4, 2020). "5 Record Store Day Releases You Need to Know: Black Friday 2020". Jazziz. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
11. Ginsberg, Gab (March 12, 2021). "Jon Batiste on New Album 'We Are,' Grammys and Oscars Prospects: It's 'Beyond My Wildest Dreams'". Billboard. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
12. "WE ARE DELUXE CD". JonBatisteStore. October 11, 2021. Retrieved November 25, 2021.
13. "Jon Batiste". Grammy. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
14. ^ "Jon Batiste Shares 'Cry' Single". JamBase.
15. "I Need You – Jon Batiste | Credits". AllMusic.
16. ^ "Show Me the Way – Jon Batiste, Zadie Smith | Credits". AllMusic.
17. "Cry – Jon Batiste | Credits". AllMusic.
18. "Roberta Freeman | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
19. "Carol Hatchett | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
20. ^ "Album WE ARE (The Deluxe Edition), Jon Batiste | Qobuz: Download and streaming in high quality".
21. "ARIA Jazz and Blues Album Chart 11 April 2022" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. April 11, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
22. "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 11 April 2022". The ARIA Report. No. 1675. Australian Recording Industry Association. April 11, 2022. p. 23.
23. "Austriancharts.at – Jon Batiste – We Are" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
24. "Ultratop.be – Jon Batiste – We Are" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
25. "Ultratop.be – Jon Batiste – We Are" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 12, 2021.
26. "Jon Batiste Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
27. "Lescharts.com – Jon Batiste – We Are". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
28. "Offiziellecharts.de – Jon Batiste – We Are" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
29. "Billboard Japan Hot Albums: 2022/04/13 公開". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved April 13, 2022.
30. "Swisscharts.com – Jon Batiste – We Are". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
31. "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
32. "Jon Batiste Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
33. "Jon Batiste Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
34. "Jon Batiste Chart History (Top Contemporary Jazz Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
35. "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Jazz and Blues Albums 2021". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved January 15, 2021.

• 2021 albums
• Verve Records albums
• Jon Batiste albums
• Grammy Award for Album of the Year