Plus, the musician talks to ET about one of the Oscar-winning actress' little-known talents.
Van Hunt is opening up about how his girlfriend, Halle Berry, is influencing not just his music, but his entire life. ET's Nischelle Turner spoke to the 51-year-old musician on Tuesday about participating virtually in BRIC JazzFest come April, and he also talked about his relationship with the Oscar-winning actress.
Berry, 54, revealed she was dating Hunt in September, and hasn't been shy about gushing about their relationship. The two recently celebrated his 51st birthday together.
"Their family has this ritual where, and I don't think she would mind me saying it, they get together and have just a small acknowledgement of the day and so they, you know, they immersed me into that and welcomed me into that and it was just beautiful," he tells ET of how they spent his special day. "It was just thoughtful and considerate and sweet and that's really the kind of person that she is, so, it was beautiful."
He definitely considers Berry his muse and teased something special.
"In more ways than I can even tell you right now," he said when asked if she's influenced his new music. "I could show you rather than I could tell you, and I will show you really soon, I promise. ...The inspiration for our relationship goes across everything, even in my parenting. I'm a completely different person, I can say it like that, and I think that it's improved every aspect of my life."
Hunt also praised Berry as a great writer, such as in her Instagram post on Valentine's Day about continuing to keep her heart open and finding live at 54 years old.
"It was well written, which at least that's what I like to acknowledge because I don't know that people know that side of her because she can write as well," he pointed out. "You guys are gonna be surprised at all the things that she can do. Yeah, I can't tell anymore than that but you gonna be surprised."
Meanwhile, the 6th Annual BRIC JazzFest is taking place virtually this year due to the coronavirus pandemic from April 8-10. Hunt talked about why it was so important for him to be a part of it and shared a touching story from one of his fans.
"Performing is important," he said. "I haven't been able to do it obviously in a year. This will be my first performance in little over a year, but I did just hear yesterday about, from a kid who identifies as queer, and he was telling me about how my music helped him through his most confusing time. And I could relate as an outlier when I was making music myself. So, you know, those are the reasons you sit down to express art and what you're feeling so that you can get it out."
"It's a lot of responsibility, but it also makes you feel validated for pushing yourself through those times when you felt like you couldn't say what you wanted to say or tell people who you were," he added.
For ticket information on this year's BRIC JazzFest, click here.
As for Berry, ET also spoke to her last April, and she joked that homeschooling her two kids -- 13-year-old Nahla and 7-year-old Maceo -- during quarantine has been a "nightmare."
Watch the video below for more.
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