Staying Human: Jon Batiste as Acousmêtre on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

ABSTRACT Through close analysis of the supporting role played by black jazz musician Jon Batiste on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, this article examines how the legacy of minstrelsy shapes late night comedy in the twenty-first century formally, spatially, and acoustically. For the majority of The Late Show’s history, Batiste has primarily operated as a voice without a body, or an acousmêtre, incorporated into a technical apparatus that deploys his reactions in a racialized manner that recalls minstrel conventions. This dynamic is exemplified in an episode from 2017 featuring black actor Morgan Freeman as a fantastical “sidekick” for the white host, Stephen Colbert, in a skit that made explicit the connotations of Batiste’s role on the show. However, when The Late Show began recording remotely as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Batiste’s relationship to the show changed. By redefining his relationship to the technology that shapes the show, Batiste has been able to transform his position on the show and exceed the technical confines of the acousmatic role he once played.