MUSICAL genius, Louis Cato, is no stranger to the late-night scene.
News of the 37-year-old replacing Jon Batiste as Bandleader on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert came on August 11, 2022.
Who is Louis Cato?
Louis Cato is a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and singer.
He is "Portuguese-born, Carolina-bred, and current Brooklyn, NY resident," according to his website.
Cato has been with The Late Show since 2015 when CBS relaunched with Stephen Colbert.
For seven years, he served as the show's interim bandleader throughout the summer and a nightly member of the Jon Batiste-led band, Stay Human.
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Cato grew up in a musically driven household and learned to play the drums at age two and wind instruments by age 12. His influences are rooted in contemporary Christian and gospel genres.
The musical prodigy studied at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, for two semesters.
During his Boston days, Cato perfected his bass, drum and guitar skills in the underground jazz and soul scene for five years.
Cato is a GRAMMY-nominated artist who has worked with the industries top-names including Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, John Legend and more.
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In 2016, he debut his solo record - a collection of his independent work - called, Starting Now.
"He is currently in post-production on his newest album Reflections, due out later this year," according to Deadline.
Why is he replacing Jon Batiste on The Late Show?
Jon Batiste is known for being the nightly bandleader and musical director on The Late Show, however, it was announced on Thursday night, August 11, that he would be officially passing the torch to Cato.
“Sharp-eyed viewers may have noticed that Jon hasn’t been here this summer. Well, I have an update: Jon has decided to leave the show,” Colbert said.
“But it’s for all the best reasons, including to continue to share his art with the world. We wanted to give him a big, in-person sendoff, but Jon’s not in town.
"I hope he’s cutting his new album, and I hope it’s called ‘More Grammys Please.'"
The evening host continued: "We’ve been so lucky to have a front-row seat to Jon’s incredible talent for the past seven years."
Many fans believed Batiste was taking the summer off to focus on his wife, Suleika Jaouad, due to her ongoing battle with cancer after she was diagnosed with leukemia for the second time in early 2022.
Cato will join the eighth season of the show with a renamed band - The Late Show Band - but with the same members: Joe Saylor, Louis Fouché, Jon Lampley, Endea Owens, and Nêgah Santos.
"Louis has done a great job this summer, and he is very humble, so he won't say this. But I will. He's a musical genius," Colbert added.
"He can play basically every instrument over there. Give him an afternoon, he'll learn how to play Mozart on a shoehorn."
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When does The Late Show return?
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will return on September 6, 2022.
It will be the show's eighth season.
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