SPEECH BY: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste
FILM: "SOUL"
Jon Batiste: Hello. Hello. Man, you know what’s deep is that God gave us 12 notes. It’s the same 12 notes Duke Ellington had, Bach had. It’s the same 12. Nina Simone. In all the nominees, I just want to first point out that every gift is special. Every contribution with music that comes from the divine, into the instruments, into the film, into the minds and hearts and souls of every person who hears it. The stories that happen when you listen to it and watch it, and the stories you share, the moments you create, the memories you make. Man, it’s just so incredibly special and I just want to first recognize the nominees and say that I’m incredibly – I’m speaking for all of us – we are incredibly humbled and grateful to the Academy for this recognition, and I’m just thankful to God for those 12 notes. Man, that’s so dope. Thank you to my parents, Suleika for your support and love, coming here with me, flew on a plane first time in a year. My parents took me around the clubs in New Orleans when I was ten years old. Put me in piano lessons. Miss Shirley, William [laughs]. Just so much, so much has happened. This moment is a culmination of a series of miracles. And I just can’t even go into all of them. We don’t have much time, but just so incredibly powerful to be standing here in the lineage that we come from and the lineage of this film, the collaborators on this film are the best that you could have ever asked for the most generous, rigorously visionary, collaborative. Pete Docter is a – I love this man – Pete Docter, he’s a genius and a visionary. Dana Murray, Kemp Powers, Tom McDougall at Disney. Thank you for welcoming us to the family with open arms. So much of a true collaborative process. My team. Thank y’all for just dealing with me ’cause my, I get ideas all the time, changing direction. Y’all holding me down. Michael, Chris, Adam, all the people. And thank you all so much for doing what you all do and putting it on the line. Putting yourself out there. It’s hard to put yourself out there. Thank you all for putting yourself out there. I’m a fan of like everybody here. So, much love, much like to you. I love you even if I don’t know you. Later on.
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