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Jon Batiste to Sing for Macron at Biden’s 1st State Dinner

Jon Batiste attends the TIME100 Gala celebrating the 100 most influential people in the world at Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center on June 8, 2022, in New York. (AP)
Jon Batiste attends the TIME100 Gala celebrating the 100 most influential people in the world at Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center on June 8, 2022, in New York. (AP)
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Jon Batiste to Sing for Macron at Biden’s 1st State Dinner

Jon Batiste attends the TIME100 Gala celebrating the 100 most influential people in the world at Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center on June 8, 2022, in New York. (AP)
Jon Batiste attends the TIME100 Gala celebrating the 100 most influential people in the world at Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center on June 8, 2022, in New York. (AP)

Musician Jon Batiste is on tap to perform at President Joe Biden’s first White House state dinner on Thursday that will highlight long-standing ties between the United States and France and honor President Emmanuel Macron.

“An artist who transcends generations, Jon Batiste’s music inspires and brings people together,” said Vanessa Valdivia, a spokesperson for first lady Jill Biden, whose office is overseeing dinner preparations.

“We’re thrilled to have him perform at the White House for the first state dinner of the Biden-Harris administration,” Valdivia said.

The black-tie dinner for Macron will be part of what is shaping up to be a busy social season at the White House. The Bidens’ granddaughter Naomi was married on the South Lawn earlier this month. And first lady Jill Biden was set on Monday to unveil the White House decorations that will be viewed by thousands of holiday visitors over the next month.

Reporters returning to the White House on Sunday with the president saw large wreaths studded with shiny Christmas tree ornaments and red bows suspended from the south side of the White House. Wreaths also were hung on the Pennsylvania Avenue side of the building. White lights were draped over the shrubs and other landscaping on the South Lawn. A Christmas tree could be seen through the windows of the Oval Office.

Batiste will be adding White House entertainer to an already long list of roles, including recording artist, bandleader, musical director, film composer, museum creative director and scion of New Orleans musical royalty.

He won five Grammy Awards this year, including for album of the year for “We Are.” During the awards show in April, Batiste ended his dance-filled performance of “Freedom” by jumping up on Billie Eilish’s table.

Batiste, 36, most recently was bandleader and musical director of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” leaving the broadcast after a seven-year run.

Batiste composed music, consulted on and arranged songs for Pixar’s animated film “Soul.” He won a Golden Globe for the music alongside Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross of Nine Inch Nails. The trio also earned the Academy Award for best original score. For their work on “Soul,” Batiste, Reznor and Ross won the Grammy for best score soundtrack for visual media.

The Washington Post was first to report that Batiste will perform at the dinner.

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‘Moana 2’ Rides Musical Wave of Pacific Culture and Creativity

US actress Auli'i Cravalho (L) and US actor Dwayne Johnson pose on the red carpet upon arrival for the UK Premier of "Moana 2", at the Cineworld, in Leicester Square, in central London, on November 24, 2024. (AFP)
US actress Auli'i Cravalho (L) and US actor Dwayne Johnson pose on the red carpet upon arrival for the UK Premier of "Moana 2", at the Cineworld, in Leicester Square, in central London, on November 24, 2024. (AFP)
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‘Moana 2’ Rides Musical Wave of Pacific Culture and Creativity

US actress Auli'i Cravalho (L) and US actor Dwayne Johnson pose on the red carpet upon arrival for the UK Premier of "Moana 2", at the Cineworld, in Leicester Square, in central London, on November 24, 2024. (AFP)
US actress Auli'i Cravalho (L) and US actor Dwayne Johnson pose on the red carpet upon arrival for the UK Premier of "Moana 2", at the Cineworld, in Leicester Square, in central London, on November 24, 2024. (AFP)

For Auli'i Cravalho, returning for the Walt Disney sequel film 'Moana 2" was a Hawaiian homecoming for both herself as an actor and for her character.

"Moana's journey will take her very far, but also that growth means coming back home and experiencing that with your community," the Hawaiian native told Reuters.

"Speaking of community, the connection of all of the people across the Pacific, this feels like a celebration of Pan Pacific, Pan Polynesian culture," she added.

For the cast and creators of "Moana 2," the project was not just professional, it was personal.

"It feels so incredible that my growth as a human seems to be juxtaposed with hers (Moana's)," Cravalho said.

"Moana 2," directed by David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller, opens on Wednesday.

The Stagwell Group's entertainment and technology arm, National Research Group, predicts "Moana 2" will bring in $145 million over the five-day Thanksgiving weekend.

The film follows wayfinder Moana, who receives a sudden call from her wayfinding ancestors to travel the seas and break the curse of god Nalo, which prevents the people of various islands from reconnecting.

She forms her own crew, which reunites her with demigod Maui, played by Dwayne Johnson.

The music for the first "Moana" was written by "Encanto" songwriter Lin Manuel Miranda, while the sequel introduces the songwriting duo Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear.

The duo, which rose to prominence on TikTok, won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album in 2022 for "The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical," attracting a lawsuit from Netflix. It also created an opportunity to take over the songs for the sequel.

While they wanted to "pay homage to the beautiful world" of the first "Moana" with the music, they also aimed to add their own "flair to it."

Part of the flair for the entire film was figuring out how to add even more Pacific Islander culture within all aspects of the sequel, which was key for the director trio.

"I think it's so special that we get to celebrate the Pacific in these films, and that we get to have a heroine who is just so compelling and empathetic and awesome and weird and goofy," said Ledoux Miller.

"I think we can see a little bit of ourselves in her," the Samoan director added, noting that many Pacific Islander communities have the same values of family and togetherness that Moana does.

For the directors, it was about going on a "new adventure with old friends" and striking a balance between familiarity and something brand new.

The film is highly anticipated after Disney's other 2024 animated sequel "Inside Out 2" crossed the $1 billion mark at the worldwide box office in less than three weeks of release, reaching that level in the fastest time of any animated film in history.

The first "Moana" found box office success as well, topping 2016 box office numbers by earning $81.1 million over the five-day Thanksgiving holiday period and $55.5 million for the weekend.