Oscar-winning singer, songwriter and composer Jon Batiste, legendary songwriter Diane Warren, and musical group Pentatonix have shared a video for their new single “Sweet.”
The Matt Earl-directed video opens with two older men playing chess in the city. During the chess match, the radio announcer asks, “Has the world forgotten how to play music?” The camera pans to Batiste, who enters building covered with instruments and trashed sheet music.
From here, the music takes a turn that highlights both the lyrics and the fun aspects of the song. Warren makes a cameo appearance in the video. Pentatonix doesn’t make a physical appearance in the video, but their presence is uniquely curated. You’ll have to watch the video to see how.
“Life is full of ups and downs. Music is a gift that helps put it all in perspective. This song will find those who need it most,” Batiste says of “Sweet.”
Warren adds, “‘ Sweet’ is like a jolt of positivity right when we need it the most. And there is no one who exudes more positivity and joy than the amazing Jon Batiste. To have both Jon and the greatest a cappella group in the world, Pentatonix on my song is a dream come true. Just in time to make everyone’s Summer a little SWEETer.”
“We were so honored to collaborate with such musical titans as Jon Batiste and Diane Warren,” says Kevin Olusola of Pentatonix. “They’ve brought the world so much love and joy in their music. We hope the people feel like dancin’ and prancin’ when they listen to ‘Sweet.'”
Batiste has been having a remarkable year. He took home five trophies at the 64th Grammy Awards in April, including the desired Album of the Year (We Are). Not only was he the most-nominated artist, but also was the most awarded of Music’s Biggest Night.
In May, TIME named him as one of the world’s most influential people of 2022. Two months later, he teamed with Amazon for its Prime Day campaign. He reimagined Billy Ocean’s 1988 hit “Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car,” which came with an accompanying music video.
On Sept. 22, he will make his Carnegie Hall debut with American Symphony. “We’ve been working on the symphony for the last three years and this is a real mix of musicians,” Batiste told Rated R&B in an interview. “It’s not just classical musicians, it’s electronic musicians, marching band musicians, and Native American musicians.”
He continued, “It’s all types of really incredible artists and culture bearers that are redefining what it means to put a symphony together and what it means to listen to it. That experience is gonna be completely redefined. That’s an exciting project that I’m looking forward to this fall.”
Batiste has also been tapped for the upcoming musical film, The Color Purple. “I’m honored to have this incredible collaboration with Oprah [Winfery], Steven Spielberg and Quincy Jones for The Color Purple musical film that’s coming up. We are wrapping up filming, which will come out next year,” he revealed to Rated R&B in the same interview.
