“Freedom” by Jon Batiste

Jon Batiste is a jazz musician who possesses a strong, multi-generational musical history in New Orleans, which itself is historically one of the most important cities in terms of African-American music. So that mystique, if you will, would perhaps be why many analysts seem to be under the impression that whatever single he drops has some type of deepness to it. 

For instance, based on Batiste’s own explanation of “Freedom”, some have interpreted this piece as being “about gay rights as well as racial equality”. But honestly speaking if one were to analyze this song exclusively from a lyrical perspective, such an idea doesn’t really come across.

Instead, as far as the chorus goes, what it seems the singer is actually doing is, most simply put, dancing. And in that regard, “Freedom” reads a lot like other dance songs. Basically, it finds the vocalist relishing how certain tune(s) gives him the inescapable urge to boogie.

But the verses, pre-chorus and bridge, in addition to the latter part of the chorus, come off differently. In that regard, Jon is actually singing to an unidentified addressee. And yes, it does read as if he is encouraging that individual, if we were to generalize and embellish things a bit, not to be afraid to shine.

But the problem, so to speak, is that this encouragement is put primarily, almost exclusively even, into the context of dancing. So it isn’t like the message is free to be Black or free to be gay but rather ‘freedom to dance’. 

And in that regard this is once again your quintessential dance song. Such tunes tend to be centered on the ideology of encouraging listeners to be uninhibited, in a manner of speaking, in terms of boogeying. And that is exactly what “Freedom” is doing.

Jon Batiste

Jon Batiste is an artist from Louisiana who is actually part of a family with a rich history in professional music. To date he has dropped eight studio albums and a couple of singles.

That said, his greatest professional achievement thus far, besides being the bandleader on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert for a few years going, would be Batiste musically scoring the critically-acclaimed animated film Soul (2020), from which he won a number of major industry awards.

The Song “Freedom”

Batiste released “Freedom” via Verve Records on 19 March 2021. 

The song appears in Jon Batiste’s 2021 studio album, a project entitled “We Are”. To note Jon has also received 11 nominations, more than any other artist, in terms of the 2022 Grammy Awards.  And “Freedom” is accountable for two of those nominations, one for Record of the Year and the other, Best Music Video.

It was nominated in the former Grammy category alongside a number of major songs, including:

• ABBA’s “I Still Have Faith in You”
• Brandi Carlile’s “Right on Time”
• Doja Cat and SZA’s “Kiss Me More”
• Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever”
• Lil Nas X’s “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)”
• Olivia Rodrigo’s “Drivers License”
• Silk Sonic’s “Leave the Door Open”

“Freedom” went on to peak within the top-20 on Billboard’s Adult Alternative Airplay chart.

The music video to this track was directed by Alan Ferguson and produced by Alex P. Wilson. And it was filmed in New Orleans, which many consider to be the de facto capital of Louisiana, especially from an entertainment standpoint.

As far as how Batiste himself has described this song, it was inspired by Elvis’s, shall we say history-changing appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show during the late 1950s. 

As far as performances went, Elvis Presley (1935-1977) conducted himself in a manner, including on that program, that caused a lot of controversy during that era. And Batiste perceives the King of Rock and Roll’s related gestures in front of the whole world as being an act of bravery. He feels that, in attitude, people who are oppressed should strive to emulate such behavior in the name of securing their rights. 

Moreover, from his perspective, this song is intended to be akin to an espousement of self-love.