Louis Cato is a Grammy nominated multi-instrumentalist, producer, songwriter, and the band leader of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The "musical genius" discusses starting the drums before he could walk, his childhood in a tight-knit church community where he wasn't exposed to pop, rock, or jazz music, and how he mastered (or not) the trombone by age fifteen. Louis tells David why he is a "jack of all trades, master of none" in the music world and what he learned from Jon Batiste, Questlove, Doc Severinsen, and Paul Shaffer about being a great band leader.

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Photograph of Louis Cato by Shervin Lainez.

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This interview has been edited and condensed to fit the time format.

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