Downloaded from YTS.MX
.
- Here we go. 15 seconds back.
- [speaking indistinctly]
Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX
- Okay.
- Say it, then just walk. - Mm-hmm.
[crowd screaming] - Five, four.
Three seconds.
Two, stand by.
- Ladies and gentlemen-- - Ladies and gentlemen--
- Ladies and gentlemen--
[rhythmic music] all: Ladies and gentlemen--
- * Ladies * - * I wanna *
- And now, ladies and gentlemen--
all: Ladies and gentlemen--
- Ladies and gentlemen--
- Saturday. - New York.
- Jolt of electricity.
- Iconic. - Musical history.
Game changing for a network show.
- Sorry, ladies and gentlemen.
- Here we go. - Excitement.
both: Energy. - Adrenaline.
both: Live.
- Absolutely fucking terrifying.
- Come on, "Saturday Night Live"!
- "Saturday Night Live." - "Saturday Night Live"!
- "Saturday Night Live."
- * Saturday night, we in the spot *
- I'm on "SNL," and you're not.
[upbeat hip-hop mashup]
- Yeah!
* *
- * Are you ready for this * - * We're ready for this *
- * Few times I've been around that track *
* So it's not just gonna happen like that *
* 'Cause I ain't no hollaback girl *
- Yeah! Yeah! - * Cause I ain't no-- *
- Hey! One, two, three, four!
- * It's getting hot in here *
- * So hot *
- * So take off all your clothes *
- * I am getting so hot *
* I wanna take my clothes off *
- * Oh, it's getting hot in here *
- * So hot *
- * So take off all your clothes *
- * Break it down for me baby *
* Oh, oh, oh, oh *
- * See-saw swinging with the boys in school *
* And the feet was flying up in the air *
* Singin' hey diddle diddle with the kitty in the middle *
* And they swinging like it just don't care *
* So I took a--
- * I can't go for that * - * No-whoa *
* No can do *
* I can't go for that * * No-whoa *
- * When she told me how to walk this way *
- * But you walked away *
* When I needed you most *
* Now baby, baby, baby, baby *
* I found someone *
- * Mm-bop doo-wop *
- * To take away the heartache *
- * Mm-bop doo-wop *
- * Come on *
- * To take away the loneliness *
- * Mm-bop doo-wop *
- * I've been feeling for too long *
- * Since you've been gone *
[Queen's "Under Pressure"]
[Dave Matthews Band's "Ants Marching"]
- [scatting]
- * Candyman tempting the thoughts of a *
* Cut cut cut cut *
- * Pressure *
- * Ice, ice, baby *
- * Under pressure *
- * Ice, ice, baby *
[Fine Young Cannibals' "She Drives Me Crazy"]
* Ice, ice, baby *
* *
* Ice, ice, baby *
- * Love is a wonderful thing *
- * Ice, ice, baby *
- * I'll sing it again *
- * Stop, wait a minute *
* Fill my cup, put some liquor in it *
* Take a sip, sign the check *
* Julio, get the stretch *
- * Don't cost you nothin' * - * Ooh, ooh, ooh *
- * Take a chance as you go * - * Yeah *
- * Don't cost you nothin' * - * Ooh, ooh, ooh *
- * If you like it, come back for more *
- * Break it down *
[record scratching]
* *
- * Caribbean queen *
* Now we're sharing the same dream *
[upbeat music]
- * That's me in the corner *
* That's me in the spotlight *
* Losing my religion *
- * Hey, baby, it's you *
- * Suicide blonde *
- * Pretty woman *
- * Come on, girl, now it's you *
- * Suicide blonde * - * Pretty woman *
- * Sink your teeth right through my bones, baby *
- Mercy. - * Just me and you *
* Come on and make it, uh *
[funky music]
* *
- * Party up *
* Got to, got to, got to party up *
* Party *
* Got to party down *
- Whoo!
- * Girls on film * - * She's a very kinky girl *
- * Girls on film *
- * From her head down to her toenails *
- * Girls on film *
- * She's a super freak, super freak *
* She's super freaky * - * Girls on film *
- * Two and one, two, three *
- Ow!
Hey!
Come on now!
- * I was born long ago *
* I am the chosen, I'm the one *
- * Hit me! *
- * I have come to save the day *
* And I won't leave until I'm done *
[Billie Eilish's "Bad Guy"]
- * Lights go down, it's dark *
* The jungle is your head *
* Can't rule your heart *
* A feeling so much stronger than a thought *
* Your eyes are wide *
* And though your soul, it can't be bought *
* Your mind can wander *
- * I know we weren't perfect *
* But I've never felt this way for no one *
- * If she reads all the lyrics, she'll *
- * Cause you said forever *
* Now I drive alone past your street *
- * Bounce, baby, bounce, baby, bounce *
- [beat-boxing] - * When I come through *
* Hit y'all with the one-two *
* Break y'all suckas that y'all suckas *
* Won't even know what to do *
* Break fool, make all y'all people wanna come to *
- * So I creep, yeah *
- * Flip mode role thick *
* And you know we don't quit *
* Hit you with some more hits *
* That make y'all wanna go *
* I'm rollin' with my whole crew *
* Bounce through even when we're-- *
- * Bye, bye, bye * - * Bye, bye *
- * My tea's gone cold, I'm wondering why *
- * Just another player in your game for two *
- * The morning rain clouds up my window *
- * Ain't no lie, baby, bye, bye, bye *
- * I'm a survivor, I'm not gon' give up *
* I'm not gon' stop, I'm gon' work harder *
* I'm a survivor *
- * It might sound crazy *
* But it ain't no lie *
- * Keep on surviving, I'm a survivor *
- Come on, "SNL," let's go.
- It's not the same as being on any other TV show.
- Something about the vibe.
- Like a school of music.
- "SNL" is about making... - Moments in time.
- Whether they're new or they're legendary.
- It's fertile ground for an artist
to really express themselves.
- They was bold enough to say, yo, put the hip-hoppers on.
Let the punk guys come on.
That's the beautiful thing.
- There's a reason why it's lasted 50 years.
- All from New York, and all live.
- Ladies and gentlemen-- - Ladies and gentlemen--
- The Rolling Stones.
- Frank Zappa.
- Once again, the Clash. - Lady Gaga.
- Now here's Prince. - Nirvana.
- One Direction. - Foo Fighters.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Taylor Swift!
- * 'Cause there we are again *
- * Nothing from nothing leaves nothing *
- * In the middle of the night *
- * You gotta have something *
- * Dancing around the kitchen *
* In the refrigerator light *
- * You got to know how to party *
* You got to know how to party *
- * Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken *
- Billy Preston.
[Billy Preston's "Nothing From Nothing"]
[cheers and applause]
- I remember when we come on the air.
We're following Watergate,
the last helicopter out of Vietnam.
The city is broke. The Church is being questioned.
And so everything seemed to be if not crumbling,
at least open to question.
That kind of moment in time, we just came on
and did a show that we'd wanna see.
And music was a big part of that.
[slow piano music]
* *
- [snorting]
Achoo.
[funky piano music]
[Ray Charles' "What'd I Say"]
* *
- * Hey, mama, don't you treat me wrong *
* Come and love your daddy all night long *
* Hey, hey *
* What'd I say *
* What'd I say now *
* Baby, what I say *
- What'd you say?
- * I said hey *
both: Hey?
- * Ho *
both: Ho?
- * Hey * both: Hey?
- * Ho * both: Ho?
- * Hey, ho * both: Hey? Ho?
- * Baby, it's all right *
both: * Baby, it's all right *
- * Baby, it's all right *
both: * Baby, it's all right *
- * Baby, it's all right *
both: * Baby, it's all right *
- * Baby, it's all right *
both: * Baby, it's all right *
- * Baby, it's all right * [both vocalizing]
* Tell me what'd I say *
- Live from New York, it's Saturday night.
["Saturday Night Live" theme]
- Could you sing for us
what you think is the theme to "Saturday Night Live?"
- Hmm.
Hum the theme to "Saturday Night Live."
- Wow.
- Hold on, wait. - [chuckles]
- Is this a trick question?
- The "SNL" theme?
- If I heard it, I'd know it.
- It's a lot of saxophone, I know that.
- Multiple horns.
Every horn is going crazy.
[discordant vocalizing]
- [imitating saxophone]
- [vocalizing]
- [humming]
[discordant vocalizing]
- [shrieking]
- [humming]
- [vocalizing]
- [laughing] - Whee--
- [laughs]
- Wow. What's the rest of it?
- There is no melody consistent, is there?
It's just a wailing saxophone.
It's someone being taken out of the building,
playing saxophone by the police.
And the microphone is still connected.
- So it's, um--
[jazzy saxophone]
* *
- When the opening is playing, I'm usually having
a panic attack somewhere.
- You're like, oh, no!
This is gonna be a disaster. I'm gonna fail.
Everything's gonna go bad live.
- That music to us was like when a rocket ship goes off,
and everybody's going like this.
[laughing] That's what that music is.
- There is no getting out of this.
And it's happening.
[screaming]
[saxophone riff]
* *
- The idea was to have an improvisation which matched
the improvisation of comedy.
- [over-the-top sobbing]
- In those days, you have to understand
that almost everything was described as
new and experimental and bold.
[sobbing becomes rhythmic]
[percussive music and sobbing rhythm]
* *
- You take it again, James.
Strut--strut your stuff there.
- Hey, stud muffins, wanna make bouncy-bouncy?
- Hey, that's enough. Knock it off, okay?
- Hey, hey.
They're so cute when they're mad.
- Now, here it is, as you can see, verifiably,
it is a check made out to you,
the Beatles, for $3,000.
All you have to do is sing three Beatle tunes.
"She loves you, yeah yeah yeah,"
that's $1,000 right there.
- "SNL" comes out in October of '75.
It's hard to explain what a revolution that was.
- * Tell me what's the word *
- * Johannesburg *
- * Said what's the word *
- * Johannesburg *
- * Said what's the word *
- * Johannesburg *
- * Said what's the word *
- * Johannesburg *
- * Say it again for me, Joe *
- * Johannesburg *
- * Say haven't you heard *
- * Johannesburg *
- * You gotta get what *
- * Johannesburg *
- * Will somebody tell me what's happening *
- * Life is a carnival *
* Believe it or not *
* Life is a carnival *
* Two bits a shot *
[The Band's "Life Is a Carnival"]
- This is rock and roll on television pretty damn early.
We're not doing it in a prerecorded way.
We're gonna go on a live show
with live music, which didn't happen all
that much in those early days.
[Paul & Paula's "Flipped Over You"]
- * Flipped over you *
- Well, there wasn't really any musical television to do
because you never played live.
You mimed to a latest single.
- * I love you so *
- * I feel the same as you *
- * More than you know *
- * No other one will do *
- * Flipped over you *
- * Flipped, flipped, flipped *
- * Flipped, flipped *
- So "Saturday Night Live" was a departure
where you actually were featured and you played live.
- Ladies and gentlemen, The Rolling Stones.
- * You're so respectable *
* You're so respectable *
* Get out of my life *
* Don't take my wife *
* Don't come back *
[The Rolling Stones' "Respectable"]
[cheers and applause]
- Lorne said that from the beginning,
music had been just as important as comedy.
Do you agree with the balance of music and comedy?
- Absolutely.
Because that was the time that we lived in.
Music was so important.
And all sorts of different new kinds of music
were happening, especially in New York City.
It was just this confluence of different kinds of music.
- Up-ski, you little firecracker.
Come on, you're on in a few seconds.
Howard, can you give me a hand?
Thank you so much. It's a real favor.
She really appreciates it.
Thank you.
- The comedy clubs were starting to become really big.
And the music clubs started becoming really big.
So it made sense that they came together.
- Hey, Mick Jagger, if you're out there, this is for you.
[bluesy rock and roll]
* Give me Mick *
* Baby's hair *
* Bulging eyes *
* Lips so thick *
* Are you woman, are you man *
* I'm your biggest funked-up fan *
* So rock me and roll me till I'm sick *
* *
* Rock and roll, rock and roll *
* Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme rock and roll *
* Gimme, gimme rock and roll *
* Gimme, gimme *
* Gimme, gimme, gimme *
* Are you woman, are you man *
* I'm your biggest funked-up fan *
.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Reverend Al Green.
[cheers and applause]
[Al Green's "Going Away"]
* *
- * Life can be hard if you live in vain *
* *
* Oh, oh *
* Trials can't be hard *
- The very first thing I ever do as a comic is,
I do an impression of Al Green.
I did "Let's Stay Together," July 1976,
at the Roosevelt Youth Center.
And I sang, "Let's Stay Together."
And I heard a little girl named Libby in the front row
say, whoo!
And I've been in show business from that moment.
[laughs]
[James Brown's "The Payback"]
[funky music]
* *
- * The big payback *
* Ow! *
- If you're a Black person and you were raised in America,
James Brown is a big, big deal.
- * The big payback *
- Can you tell us, from soup to nuts,
how the concept of "James Brown's Celebrity Hot Tub"
came to be?
- I didn't wanna do it, first of all.
Because back then I didn't smoke, I didn't get high.
And at "SNL," a lot of the people were smoking.
It was 2:00, 3:00 in the morning,
and Barry Blaustein and David Sheffield,
who wrote "Coming to America," they was like...
[breathlessly] Hey, you know what would be funny?
If you was James Brown in a hot tub.
And I was like, what?
And I was like, get the fuck out of here.
Y'all be smoking that shit, talking that--
I ain't doing no crazy shit.
- * Hot tub full of water *
* I say hot tub *
- And then when we did it, it was, oh,
it was the funniest thing ever.
- Should I get in the hot tub? - Yeah!
- Will it make me sweat? - Yeah!
- Should I get in the hot tub? - Yeah!
- Will it make me wet? - Yeah!
- Well, well, well.
[funky music]
- All us kids were looking to "SNL" for the information,
for the take on stuff.
The impressions, they ended up becoming reality for us.
- * Hey! *
* Too hot in the hot tub *
- And not even really remembering
if we really knew what James Brown
danced like or sounded like.
We just knew the way Eddie did it.
- I'm gonna get in the hot tub.
- He really is a musician.
And when you can really sing...
- Hey!
- That's when the joke is the funniest.
- Don't go away.
We'll be right back with more "Celebrity Hot Tub."
- The similarities between music
and comedy are plentiful.
There's timing.
[upbeat Latin music]
Cadence.
[energetic jazz music]
* *
There's misdirecting.
[piano riff]
A great jazz musician, when he plays a solo
or she plays a solo, will give the audience something
that their ear can attach to and then
turn on it to surprise them.
And that same thing happens in comedy.
That's why music and comedy has always gone together.
- Ray, you're probably the most popular
rhythm and blues artist in American history.
I guess my first question to you, sir, would be,
why singing?
- I suppose I started singing because I wanted to express
what I was feeling in my soul.
And I felt the blues.
So I needed to sing the blues.
- All right, sir. Fair enough.
My next question to you, sir, would be,
what the heck are the blues and who gets them?
- Danny Aykroyd was a blues aficionado.
And when he met Belushi, the two of them teamed up.
And Belushi could sing.
These two guys had in the back of their minds,
it would be fun to get a musical act together someday
and play the blues.
[bluesy piano music]
- [scatting]
- There was a running bit on the show
at that time, the Bees.
- Do you think we like this?
- John hated the bee costume.
Nonetheless, he said, if I could put that bee costume on
and sing with Danny on the harmonica,
that's how it started.
- * A buzz-buzz *
- * Buzz-buzz * - * A-buzz-buzz *
- And that was the first time they really
did the Blues Brothers on television,
but they were in the bee costumes.
[mid-tempo jazz music]
- King Bee?
I mean, still one of my favorite things
I've ever seen in my life.
I mean, the way he ended and flipped
and just fell on his back.
I'm like, this guy's unbelievable.
- * I'm a King Bee *
* I can buzz all night long *
- So during the week off, they come up
with this concept of these two brothers who play blues.
And they wear sunglasses day and night.
So I wrote an arrangement of a song called "Hey, Bartender."
We rehearsed the "Saturday Night Live" Band,
did it for Lorne Michaels.
Didn't make the show.
Lorne said, frankly, I don't see anything funny
about the Blues Brothers.
So they gave up.
They said, if Lorne doesn't like it,
we're wasting our time.
Wednesday, about 3:15, Lorne comes out of read-through,
and he says, the show's three minutes short.
John and Danny jumped on him and--
Lorne, the Blues Brothers.
So Lorne said, we have nothing worthwhile to put
in those three minutes.
You guys might as well make fools of yourselves.
[The Blues Brothers' "Soul Man"]
[energetic jazz music]
- * Coming to you on a dusty road *
* Good loving, I got a truckload *
* And when you get it, you got something *
* So don't worry, 'cause I'm coming *
* I'm a soul man *
* *
- It's shocking sometimes when you see things like, you know,
Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi making music,
and it also happens to be good music.
It almost makes you upset if a comedian
can just turn it on like that.
- * Put on your yarmulke *
* Here comes Hanukkah *
* So much fun-ukkah *
* To celebrate Hanukkah *
I had no idea how much I'd be doing music on the show
when I first got on.
* I love you, sweatshirt *
* Red-hooded sweatshirt *
* Dip, dip, dip sweatshirt *
* Shama lama ding-dong *
"Weekend Update" was what Lorne told me to start doing
when I first was on.
And he would always say, get on "Weekend Update,"
talk directly to the camera, let America
get to know you a little bit, and then you'll relax.
Come on, audience members. Help me out here.
* I love you, sweatshirt *
- Red-hooded--
- * Sweatshirt *
- Dip, dip, dip--
- Aw!
- Adam was kind of deconstructing everything.
A lot of times when people write song parodies,
the production is very elaborate.
And Adam broke it down and just played a guitar
and made sure that every joke landed.
- * Sloppy Joe, slop Sloppy Joe *
It's always been a comfortable spot
for a lot of comedians getting to say jokes through music.
And it does something to your brain that allows you
to just be a little freer.
- "SNL" was such a huge part of my musical taste.
Not just that I liked the bands that were on there,
but just like, it influenced the way I wanted to make art.
And "Band Reunion at the Wedding" is
a very personal sketch for me.
- So that is the sketch that I am the most
jealous of in my life.
- The premise of the sketch is that there's this old guy
at his daughter's wedding.
- The bride's dad got his old band
back together at a wedding.
It's an elegant event.
- Everyone's in tuxes, and he's like,
I'm so proud of you, honey, that you're getting married.
I got the guys back together.
We're gonna play a little song for you.
So the feeling is like, oh, this is gonna be
like a blues song or something.
- Fred came up to me.
He's like, I want you to play bass.
I'm like, what?
And he's like, you're actually--
you can actually play bass on this song.
- And by luck, Dave Grohl was, like, in the band
for the musical guest.
So I didn't have to explain any--he comes from that music.
- That was Fred Armisen singing,
Bill Hader playing bass, Ashton playing guitar,
and me playing drums.
- So there I am with a bass next to Dave Grohl on drums,
and I'm like, this is insane.
- But this feels right, sharing our music
with this wonderful young couple.
- Yes.
- We did it at dress, and it was--you know.
And so I was like, oh, I guess that's not gonna be on air.
And then I was dressed as Jesse Ventura.
This is how it works at "SNL."
I'm in full--fully dressed like Jesse Ventura.
I have a bald cap on, I have a whole thing,
and I'm ready to go out as Jesse Ventura.
And then Fred said, we're gonna do the sketch.
And Fred came up, and he's like, we're
just cutting the second verse.
It's just chorus, verse, chorus, and then we're out.
We have to cut the whole sketch in half.
It was three minutes.
Now it's like a minute 50. So we gotta go.
We have a minute 30. We gotta go. We gotta go.
And I see Dave Grohl.
And I'm like--so, you know, we cut the second verse.
He's like, what? [laughs]
- All right. Did this thing get heavier?
All right, let's do this.
Madeline, my little Maddie, I'm so proud of you.
And I hope Daddy doesn't make too much of a fool
of himself up here.
All right. It's with all my love.
You guys ready? Here we go.
One, two, three, four.
Yeah!
[hardcore punk music]
* *
* When Ronald Reagan comes around *
* *
* He brings the fascists to your town *
* *
* You think it's cool to be a jock *
* *
* But we get beat up by the cops *
* *
* Fist fight, fist fight *
* Fist fight in the parking lot *
- Oh, and Dave Grohl's mic doesn't work, right?
- [yelling indistinctly]
* And a white picket fence *
- Awesome too, because you're actually seeing
a perfect live sketch experience a live problem.
So, like, you're seeing the chaos of that
and the problem solving of that in real time.
And it also looks so fun.
- One, two, three, four!
all: * Fist fight, fist fight *
* Fist fight in the parking lot *
* Fist fight *
- And it was such a Fred Armisen creation, that sketch.
- That's, like, the major thing
that I wanted to do on "SNL" is like--
it's like a love letter to my youth.
All those bands that I loved,
it was everything combined into one.
* *
- We're Crisis of Conformity. Thank you.
.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Olivia Rodrigo.
[cheers and applause]
- I just remember the doors. It said 8H.
And I remember them opening.
And then the rest is, like, such a fever dream blur.
- Music next.
- I don't think I've ever been more nervous
for anything than the first time I performed at "SNL."
Yeah, it turned out okay, but man,
I was in the dressing room sort of having a panic attack
before I went on.
Being on "SNL" is such a rite of passage.
I feel so honored to have gotten to perform here.
* Got my driver's license last week *
* Just like we always talked about *
* 'Cause you were so excited for me *
* To finally drive up to your house *
I just think it's all of the people
that you've ever looked up to have performed on that stage.
And so to get to do it is just--it's really meaningful.
- "SNL," because it's a live show
and because it's an American ritual,
it has this unique ability to take whatever is
the thing that's happening right now
and put it into Studio 8H.
- 'Cause that's a big part of the booking.
You have to be very ahead about who's gonna make it.
[The Strokes' "Last Night"]
- * Last night, she said *
* Oh, baby, I feel so down *
* You turn me off *
* When I feel left out *
- Often a lot of people say, like,
I don't know who that band is.
And I'm like, well, you will know who they are soon.
[The White Stripes' "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground"]
- It changes the way that you're seen in a way
that no other show can do.
[grungy metal music]
- It's hard to know.
When things start cooking, you can't tell
if you're the flavor of the week
and this is gonna be all over within a couple weeks,
or if this is the beginning of a new path
that you're going down that's gonna go on for years.
You really just don't have any idea.
I always assumed it was something that was
gonna be short-lived, so.
* *
- * Dead leaves and the dirty ground *
* When I know you're not around *
- And now here's Prince.
- I was there when Prince came on the very first time.
And he only got one song. He sang "Partyup."
And he wasn't Prince yet.
- Down with war. Party up.
One, two, three!
[Prince's "Partyup"]
[funky rock music]
* *
- * We don't give a damn *
* We just wanna jam and party *
- * Party up, got to party up *
- But he was still "Dirty Mind" Prince,
kind of grungy and legwarmers,
and boots look kind of old and cheap.
I remember at the end, they sang,
"We're not gonna fight no more,"
and threw his mic down and walked off the stage.
- * You're gonna have to fight your own damn war *
* 'Cause we don't wanna fight no more *
[cheers and applause]
- What's up? How you doing?
I saw you earlier.
Hi. All right.
- Thank you for doing this.
- Who's the smallest?
- Let's try and get it over quick.
- It can't be that wide.
- David Geffen called me about Nirvana,
because they were on his label,
and he said, I don't know what's happening,
but last week they sold 60,000 records,
and this week they sold 140,000.
So something's happening.
- You felt that--you felt that Nirvana was there
and people were talking about it.
You get more calls than you ever got before
from friends in my hometown.
Just like, what's he like?
What's Kurt like?
- Nirvana on "SNL" was the first time
I'd seen them perform live.
I didn't have cable in my house in high school,
so that was very exciting.
That whole week we had talked about,
Nirvana's gonna be on "SNL." Nirvana's gonna be on "SNL."
Me and my friends had been learning their songs
in our bedroom too.
[indistinct chatter]
- Jesus Christ, look at that camera.
- Stand by.
- To me, it was the most iconic American
television show of all time.
- Hi, I'm Charles Barkley, host of the season premiere
of "Saturday Night Live" with Nirvana.
Look, Mom, your favorite, Nirvana.
[laughter]
- The first time we came to "Saturday Night Live,"
I was absolutely fucking terrified.
So we get up, and you kind of check
to make sure everything works.
Guitars, drums, speakers are up.
Mic is up.
And then you try to be really quiet,
and then they start to count you down.
[ticking]
The room gets dead silent.
Your heart is racing.
And you're thinking, oh, my God, I'm gonna faint.
I'm gonna puke on live television.
I'm gonna die.
And typically, what happens if I get nervous,
I beat the shit out of the drums twice as hard.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Nirvana.
[cheers and applause]
[Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit"]
[upbeat grunge music]
* *
- I was hitting the drums ten times harder
than I've ever hit them before in my life.
By the first verse, I had snapped
my snare stick in half.
[wood cracks]
Which, um, is not good.
And I thought, oh-- and this is only, like,
20 seconds into the song.
And there was one break right before the first drum roll,
I think, where I grabbed another stick really
quick and busted into it.
- * Hello, hello, how low *
- I mean, it was so close to being,
like, "Titanic"-level disaster.
- * With the lights out *
* It's less dangerous *
* Here we are now *
* Entertain us *
* I feel stupid *
* And contagious *
* Here we are now *
* Entertain us *
* A mulatto *
* Yeah *
- Three people making that sound
through your television sets--
I mean, they probably blew so many speakers.
- Yeah!
- Hi, I'm Josh Brolin, and I'm hosting "SNL" with Adele.
- So if you still have your house,
stay in, invest your money, and invest in some laughs.
- That's good advice, crazy lady.
- I know.
- Okay, let's do that again.
- Should I look in the camera? Where am I looking?
I'm just kind of looking lost.
[laughter]
- I remember us sitting at the rewrite table on nine.
And Adele, like, not a lot of us had heard of her.
And she started singing.
And it was-- like, we all stopped.
We opened the curtain, and everybody looked down
and went, who is that?
- Ladies and gentlemen, Adele.
[cheers and applause]
- * Should I give up *
* Or should I just keep chasing pavements *
* Even if it leads nowhere *
* Or would it be a waste *
* Even if I knew my place *
* Should I leave it there *
It was just meant to be like a normal show,
just like me and Josh Brolin.
And I was the musical guest, and he was hosting it.
* Yeah *
- The whole country was watching for other reasons.
It just happened to be that show that Sarah Palin was on.
- The real one?
Bye.
[cheering]
- Adele went to the after party,
and then they went back to the hotel.
And they went to British Airways
for the 8:00 a.m. flight.
She said when they were on the runway,
she checked her computer, and she was at number 45.
And when they landed, she was almost at number 1.
- It ended up being a huge show.
And literally overnight--
like, whenever I've heard that saying,
overnight success, I was like, yeah, whatever.
You've gotta proper work for it.
And it was overnight-- literally overnight, so.
- After she performed here, her whole career
took off in America.
Now it sounds ridiculous because you're like,
hey, it's Adele, you know.
But everybody has to start somewhere.
"SNL's" musical legacy is the incredible opportunity
it gives artists and the early belief in them.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Dua Lipa.
[cheers and applause]
- When they give you the nod and go,
yeah, you deserve to be on this stage.
* I got new rules, I count 'em *
* One, don't pick up the phone *
* You know he's only calling 'cause he's drunk and alone *
* Two, don't let him in *
You get, like, a certain confidence
and excitement and a belief in yourself that you can do it.
* You're getting over him *
.
- I was in LA hosting the MTV Movie Awards.
And these writers were there.
And there were all these young kids,
and they look like they're all from Brooklyn.
I remember talking to Lorne.
I go, hey, you should look into these kids, man.
Like, these guys that wrote this are really funny.
And they work hard. They show up.
Not knowing that they were gonna change
the face of "Saturday Night Live."
- Well, we got hired on the strength
of not our songs or our videos, is my understanding.
They didn't know that we were doing them
until we were already hired.
- So we had made a short that hadn't
gotten on the air at that point.
It was--Will Forte had written a thing called "Lettuce."
- It's all right to feel sad, but the pain goes away.
- After that, we knew that it was possible to get something
that we just filmed on a mini-DV camera
on our own on national TV.
So we were trying to think of another idea.
- We knew Parnell had done his "raps" on "Update,"
which we had loved.
- Listen up, beyotch.
* You know she sends me *
* When she looks my way *
* I can't defend me *
* All I can do is pray *
* For her to spare me *
* From a sweet death ray *
* But the bitch really wants to take a roll in the hay *
- The next thing that we tried was "Lazy Sunday."
And it was me and Parnell.
* Lazy Sunday, wake up in the late afternoon *
* Call Parnell just to see how he's doing *
- * Hello * - * What up, Parns *
- * Yo, Samberg, what's crackin' *
- * You thinking what I'm thinkin' *
* Narnia, man, it's happening *
- We had no expectations on it, truly.
We were, like, just hoping it aired.
- Jorma made the beat to "Lazy Sunday,"
and he just did it on his "SNL" computer,
as far as I know.
- I had to make a beat fast.
And it was kind of the first time
that you could make music fast enough, like using
the computers that we had that were strictly meant for,
like, writers to write on.
- * 68th and Broadway *
- We never got a shooting permit.
We didn't have a crew either.
We would just get into a van or something.
We kind of liked the lo-fi aesthetic
as well, because the show was so polished.
- * Two * - * No, six *
- * No, 12 * - * Baker's dozen *
- * I told you that I'm crazy for these cupcakes, cousin *
- Did you watch the one before?
both: Yeah.
- It was like being on ecstasy. [laughs]
- "Lazy Sunday," that was the first time
I had ever been in the vicinity of, like, a phenomenon.
The first YouTube clip I was ever sent was "Lazy Sunday."
I remember going back home to Oklahoma.
I was in an airport, and someone had a T-shirt
that said, you know, "Mr. Pibb plus Red Vines
equals crazy delicious."
I mean, it was like--
overnight this became a huge thing.
- * Yes, the chronic-- * - * What *
- * Cles of Narnia *
* We love the chronic-- * - * What *
- * Cles of Narnia *
* Pass that chronic-- * - * What *
- * Cles of Narnia *
[gun clicks and fires]
But it wasn't until "Dick in a Box"
that we were like, fuck.
[laughs] Like, we're gonna be doing these.
["Saturday Night Live" theme]
* *
- I met them when I came in to host the Christmas episode.
And they had just had a lot of success with "Lazy Sunday."
So Lorne, of course, was like, do a digital short,
some sort of musical element with Justin.
- We kicked it with him and talked about how
we kind came up on similar music.
And then we just locked ourselves in our office
and pitched a million ideas.
- By the way, we gave up first.
Because we tried Tuesday night, stayed up all night
the way everyone does, but came out empty-handed.
And then it got to Wednesday, and we stayed up
all night and also had nothing.
- But I remember that it was late in the game.
And Lorne would pop in and say, hey,
do you guys got anything yet?
And we didn't have anything.
- * I wanna sex you up *
- And I wanna say it was-- yeah, Thursday night.
Andy and I bonded over our love of early '90s R&B.
- * I wanna sex you up *
- Like, what's the best sort of spoof of that?
And how can we create these characters
to be so unaware of how terrible they are?
- We had this much on a piece of paper, I remember.
- Yes. - I remember because I had it.
And it was some version of the intro lines
up to the first dick in a box.
So it was just enough to know what the premise was.
- We asked Katreese Barnes, who was music supervisor
and just the best person.
She could start building music in that style, which she did.
- And we told Lorne the idea.
And he was like, okay.
Well, just remember, it's the Christmas show.
And a lot of kids will be watching.
- So we ended up writing it sort of on the spot
and recording it into that night.
Until--you know, late, late night, early morning.
- He literally taught us so many more tricks
of producing pop vocals.
And he redid the melodies to be way better.
- I remember he came in and he was like, watch this.
- I was like, guys, if you really put the effort in
to actually try to make this a good song,
it's going to make it even funnier.
There were some meticulous moments
in the recording where I was like,
no, Andy, do that line again.
[laughter]
- And we shot it on a Friday night.
And the song was so good.
We were all singing it and, like, having such a good time.
- That's how the song made me feel at that very moment.
- Yeah? - Okay, we're rolling.
- And we did it the way that we had always done
all of our early music videos, where
we bought a little tiny shitty speaker
from RadioShack.
- * Something so you know what's on my mind *
- We played the beat so they could rap back to it.
We bought a bunch of mini-DV tapes
and, like, just filmed it ourselves.
- All right. Cut it, cut it, cut it.
- And then Akiva, who's sort of resident Lonely Island
director and editor, took all the footage
and went in and from Friday night
stayed up all night into Saturday,
up until dress rehearsal was finishing the final edit.
I'm convinced, and no one can tell me otherwise,
that the reason it made it onto the show
is because no one really knew what the sketch was.
[gentle R&B music]
- Hey girl, I got something real important to give you.
So just sit down and listen.
[upbeat R&B music]
* Girl, you know we've been together *
* Such a long, long time *
- * Such a long time *
- * And now I'm ready to lay it on the line *
- * Wow, you know it's Christmas *
* And my heart is open wide *
- * Open wide *
- * Gonna give you something so you know what's on my mind *
- * What's on my mind *
* A gift real special *
* So take off the top *
- * Take a look inside *
* It's my dick in a box *
- It's in a box.
- Everybody went out to the floor to watch it.
We have a great picture of everybody
watching it out on the floor.
- * Don't mean anything *
* I'm not gonna get you a fancy car *
* Girl, you gotta know you're my shining star *
* Not gonna get you *
- We were trying to borrow from all the iconic moments
from those early '90s R&B videos,
like the Michael Bivins
sitting on the basketball hoop.
- * It's my dick a box *
- The references were accurate, and it was--
it was a little dream come true.
* *
- * My dick in a box, girl *
* It's my dick in a box *
[cheers and applause]
- He changed the whole game.
It was like, whoa.
This is a comedy voice that we haven't heard in years.
They just took it and just crushed it.
- * I just had sex *
* And it felt so good *
- * Take no chances *
* Stop freelancin' *
* Invest in your future *
* Don't dilute your finances *
- * [bleep] land, I'm on a boat, mother [bleep] *
- * Mother [...] *
- * No trees, I climb buoys, mother [bleep] *
- Mother [...] *
- * I took it and threw it on the ground *
- We had had a whole lot of, like, let them do what they do,
you know what I mean, week after week after week.
- * Shy Ronnie *
- [mumbling] * My name is shy Ronnie *
* And I'm walking the streets *
* You can't tell me nothin' *
* 'Cause I'm straight up equipped *
- * Speak up *
- It really became a staple.
There's like a template now.
- * Here we go *
* Uh, Lonely Island *
* Michael Bolton *
- * Yeah! *
- The funny music video was really in vogue in the 2000s
on Lonely Island's coattails.
People were doing them all the time on YouTube.
But yet the style persists with "SNL."
- You guys are just playing characters.
- Characters. - Oh!
- So people won't think it's us.
- It's not about you at all.
- * Three sad virgins, what *
* Three sad virgins, whoa *
* Three sad virgins, what *
* Three sad virgins, whoa *
- * Let's do it in my twin bed, twin bed *
* I'm not gonna like it, like it *
* But it's the only option, option *
* Where we can get it poppin' *
- * Come back, Barack *
- Come on, man. We out in the rain.
- * Don't leave us here alone *
- It's definitely too cold to be in the rain, though.
- * At least pick up the phone *
- I mean, I know you're busy with that library
and everything.
- * The White House ain't a home *
- Trump don't even got a dog, man.
- * Just come back, Barack *
- It's been a long time, Barack.
- I mean, we made over a hundred of them by the end.
And the whole time, we just kind of
couldn't believe our luck that we did something
that people liked enough that we got asked to keep doing it.
[panting]
Damn.
The whole thing was just a virtual reality experience.
.
- * The problem is all inside your head, she said to me *
* The answer is easy if you take it logically *
* I'd like to help you in your struggle to be free *
* There must be 50 ways to leave your lover *
- Growing up, watching "SNL"
was a big part of music for me.
- * Furthermore, I hope my meaning won't *
* Be lost or misconstrued *
- There's no question that the musical guests influenced
if I was gonna be watching.
And then if you were lucky, that person
would show up in a sketch.
- Lorne, I have grave doubts about the costume.
- What, in the opening? - Yes, I do.
The opportunity to be part of a comedic ensemble,
that was a treat for me.
- What are you worried about?
- I'm worried about-- [stammers]
I feel there's a real good chance that
I could look like a fool, is what I'm worried about.
- Not a chance.
- * I met my old lover *
* On the street last night *
* She seemed so glad to see me, I just smiled *
* *
* And we talked about some old times *
* And we drank ourselves some beers *
* Still crazy after all *
* Oh *
The turkey outfit was my idea.
Lorne was fine with me making up what I wanted to do,
and I was fine with the writers
giving me lines to say.
[applause]
- And that was wonderful. - Wonderful?
You call that wonderful? - What, you had a problem?
- It was one of the most humiliating
experiences of my life.
- In those days, it was still shocking
when the musical guest was in a sketch.
- The Kannon AE-I, a camera so advanced, so simple,
even Stevie Wonder can use it.
- So simple, anyone can use it.
- That showed how cool they were.
- Remember when you were with the Beatles?
- Sure.
Sure.
- That was awesome.
- So, like, when Madonna was on "Coffee Talk,"
that was just like-- you know, brain explosion.
- This is my best friend, Liz Rosenberg.
[cheers and applause]
- Linda, don't talk to me.
I'm having a bad hair day.
- Mike Myers had a relationship with Madonna
because they shot a short film for "Wayne's World."
- Wayne!
- I'm in here, Garth.
- Hello, Garth.
- So Mike wrote her into "Coffee Talk."
- This show is dedicated, as ev-rah,
to Barbra Joan Streisand.
Yes. - We love her.
- We love her!
- And then we booked Barbra Streisand.
We weren't really sure she was gonna come
because she doesn't do live television.
She was not sure she wanted to do it.
She wasn't in dress.
It was a thing.
- Long story short, I loved "Prince of Tides."
It was to die for.
- She came in, we pulled her around the back,
and we pushed her out.
- And if you watch the sketch, they have no idea.
- The movie was like buttah.
- Like buttah!
- Like a big stick of buttah.
- Mamma-la! Oy.
- All this talk about food, I'm getting hungry, girls.
[all screaming]
- Oh, my God! oh!
[cheers and applause]
It's Barbra!
You're beautiful! I love this woman!
It's Barbra!
Oh, my God!
It's Barbra!
- She's like buttah!
Did you see her? - She is like buttah!
Oh, I can die now!
- Watching musicians do comedy, I'm into it.
I like that.
I think they're having fun.
They must love that for this one day,
they get to do a character.
- Here are the top three questions
they had for Aerosmith, okay?
Question number one.
Is it true you guys don't do drugs or alcohol anymore?
- Yeah, that's right.
No drugs, no alcohol.
Feels great.
- No way.
- Way.
[chuckling]
- Okay. Garth, go ahead. Next question.
- Okay, next question is for Steven.
Um, okay.
Are those really your lips, or are
they lip implants like Barbara Hershey
had in the movie "Beaches"?
- [trilling] They mine, man!
- Bitchin'!
Bitchin' lips.
- I love doing stuff like that, particularly things that
push me out of the comfort zone a little bit,
because I'm such a fan of comedy.
- They're telling me to get out.
They keep saying it.
- Who? Who is saying that?
- The walls.
- When you pitch a sketch idea that the musicalguest
is involved in potentially,
it could always go wrong.
There are a million reasons why they would say no.
It's your job to respectfully convince them.
- Can you tell me the story of how you guys
convinced Beyoncé to do the "Single Ladies" sketch?
- Yes.
Andy texted me and he said, hey, are you in town?
I said, yeah, I'm in the city.
He said, Bobby Moynihan has this great idea for a sketch
about you, me, and him being
Beyoncé's background dancers
for "Single Ladies" that never made the cut.
She's gonna be the musical guest this week.
I was like, full, like, leotard?
And he's like, yeah.
And I was like, oh, this is too funny.
Like, we have to do this.
She was very polite about it, but she was very hesitant.
And when I say hesitant, I mean,
like, she was not having it.
- Beyoncé!
Oh, my gosh, I'm so psyched to do this new video with you.
- Me too.
But, you know, there's this one thing.
Um, I haven't met the other dancers.
Are we gonna have time to rehearse?
- Oh, look, don't worry about the other dancers, B-town.
I handpicked them myself. These guys are pros.
- These guys?
- I'm like, does she know how funny this is gonna be?
Like, how beloved this whole moment will be?
So I said, bring-- bring me the leotard.
So I put the leotard and the heels
and the hose on and everything.
And I put a robe on.
And I walked, and I knocked on her door.
I walked in and I threw the robe down,
and I put my hands on my hips.
And she was like, no, you didn't.
all: Hi. - We're the dancers.
[cheers and applause]
- All right. Are you guys warmed up?
- Oh, we're warmed up.
- Yeah, we're warmed up like biscuits.
- Yeah, dance biscuits. - Playback.
- * Don't be mad once you see that he want it *
* If you like it, then you should'a put a ring on it *
- Action!
- * Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh *
* Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh *
* If you like it, then you should'a put-- *
- Can we stop? We gotta stop.
- Cut, cut, cut.
- * If you like it, then you should'a put a ring on it *
* Oh-oh-oh *
[cheers and applause]
.
[Patti Smith's "My Generation"]
- * People are trying to put us down *
- * Talkin' 'bout my generation *
- * Just because we g-g-g-get around *
- * Talkin' 'bout my generation *
- * I don't dig no censorship *
- * Talkin 'bout my generation *
- * Hope I die because I'm hip *
- * Talkin' 'bout my generation *
- * My generation, baby *
* My generation, baby *
- If you look at the city of New York--culturally,
financially, everything--
"Saturday Night Live" always went with that.
So in 1975, '76, '77, it was kind of an avant-garde city.
This was kind of an avant-garde show at the time.
[cacophonous music]
* *
- "SNL" music in the '70s and '80s felt like
it was kind of counterculture.
- * Your mind is totally controlled *
* It has been stuffed into my mold *
- It was highlighting things that might
not have been on top 40 radio.
[breathy flute music]
- I grew up watching the show.
The first thing I remember that blew my mind
was a rerun, and it was Devo playing "Satisfaction."
- Ladies and gentlemen, Devo.
- Fred Willard was hosting, and I just remember thinking,
the way they played and that they did--like--[stammers]
It feels like an optical illusion.
- * I can't get no satisfaction *
* I can't get me no satisfaction *
* And I try, and I try *
- I almost feel like it was also a message from Lorne.
We're gonna put visual bands on.
This is not just, like, a musical guest.
Like, we're gonna make this a really
important part of the show.
[Debbie Harry's "Come Back Jonee"]
* *
- * Come back, come back, Jonee *
* Come back now, Jonee *
* Come back, come back, Jonee *
You know, we were all sort of having
this countercultural approach.
And "Saturday Night Live" really brought some of that
to the masses--you know, the big audience.
It was really like talking to a friend in a way.
* Come back, Jonee! *
* *
- So in this new wave of music,
it had much more to do with imagination
and less to do with technique.
You could become an artist overnight just by having
an idea and a keyboard.
[Talking Heads' "Artists Only"]
- * I don't have to prove *
* That I am creative *
* I don't have to prove *
* That I am creative *
* All my pictures *
* Are confused *
* And now I'm going to take me to you *
* *
- Some of the bands with the sharpest edges at the time
were groups like The Talking Heads and B-52s.
And again, they took the idea of punk rock
and just mixed it with their own kind
of personal eccentricities and flavor
to make some of the most interesting music.
- * We were at the beach * - * Ooh *
* Everybody had matching towels *
* Somebody went under a dock *
* And there they saw a rock *
* It wasn't a rock *
* It was a rock lobster *
[singers vocalizing]
[The B-52s' "Rock Lobster"]
- Seeing the B-52s on "Saturday Night Live"
for the first time, that is really what changed my life.
- * Rock lobster *
- I always felt weird.
And then I see the B-52s on television.
I'm like, oh, my God, they're weird too.
And they're on TV, and people like weird stuff.
And okay, it's okay to be weird.
[Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band's "Ashtray Heart"]
[grungy punk rock music]
- * You used me like an ashtray heart *
* Case of the punks, right from the start *
- I was responsible for a few bookings--
Miles Davis and Captain Beefheart,
both of which were considered disaster appearances.
[mellow jazz music]
Miles had his back to the camera,
which was driving them nuts.
* *
- * You picked me out *
* Brushed me off *
- And Captain Beefheart, if you ever heard his music,
he has tones that a lot of people can't handle.
[discordant horn solo]
* *
- His performance on "SNL," I had on a VCR tape.
We had passed it around.
You know, by the '90s, you know,
these kind of things were bootleg tapes.
And that was one of my favorites,
was Captain Beefheart.
- Not one person in the audience clapped.
It was--I'd never seen that before the "applause" sign.
And one guy from the balcony yelled, "Shit!"
You could see that on the tape.
[music ends]
- Shit!
- It's hard to explain what this show meant.
It means a lot now, but at that time,
when the city was smaller, less people,
the arts scene was more integrated.
Music and comedy were brothers and sisters in arms.
They were not separated.
[David Bowie's "The Man Who Sold the World"]
* *
- * We passed upon the stair *
* And spoke of was and when *
* Although I wasn't there *
* He said I was his friend *
* Which came as some surprise *
* I spoke into his eyes *
- * I thought you died alone *
- * A long, long time ago *
* *
* Oh, no * - * Oh, no *
- * Not me * - * Not him *
- * I never lost control *
* You're face * - * You're face *
- * To face * - * To face *
- * With the man who sold the world *
* *
* I laughed and shook his hand *
* And made my way back home * - * Home *
- * I roamed the desert land *
- * For years and years I roamed *
- * I gazed a gazely stare *
* At all the millions here *
- * We must have died alone *
- * A long, long time ago *
* *
* Oh, no * - * Who knows *
- * Not me * - * Not him *
- * Not you *
- * We never lost control *
* You're face * - * You're face *
- * To face * - * To face *
.
- All right, here we go. Stand by, sound on tape at 11.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Kendrick Lamar.
[Kendrick Lamar's "Rich Spirit"]
- * Broke phone *
- * I'm a savage *
* Classy, bougie, ratchet *
* Sassy *
- * Five, four, three, two-- *
- * Let's rock *
- * Bow, get the [...] though, I don't bluff, bro *
* Aiming at your head like a buffalo *
- * Is so maniacal, we're liable to pull a juju *
* The irony is that this bad chick in my lap *
* *
- * This very moment I bring *
* Put it on everything *
* That I will retire with the ring *
- * My name is Hov *
* Not D.O.C. *
* But they belong to them letters *
* "No One Can Do It Better" *
- * This is the story of a champion *
* Runners on their mark and they pop their guns *
* Stand up, stand up, here he comes *
* Tell me what it takes to be number one *
- * Never meant to make your daughter cry *
* I apologized a million times *
- * What's my name? *
* DMX, and I be the best, you see the rest? *
* They lookin' like they need a rest *
- * Girls, you know you better watch out *
* Some guys, some guys are only about *
* That thing, that thing, that *
- * As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death *
* I take a look at my life and realize *
* There's nothing left *
- * With so much drama in the LBC *
* It's kind of hard being Snoop D-O-double-G *
- * How low can you go *
* Death row *
* What a brother know *
* Once again back is the incredible *
* Rhyme animal, the uncannable *
- * Rock y'all, check out the funky cut *
* It's like travelin' through time *
* To the "Stray Cat Strut" *
* Cuts are slicker than grease, needles sharper than knives *
- "Saturday Night Live" was one of the first platforms
that played hip-hop music.
And so to have hip-hop on a show
that was seen by millions of people was really a big deal.
- Check this out.
Lately, the media has been dogging rap music,
saying it incites violence, riots, and whatnot.
They are not violent, never have been, never will be.
My homeboys, from Hollis, Queens, Run-DMC!
[cheers and applause]
- Initially, did you guys feel, like, out of place?
Like, these people might not get us, or like--
- No, not really.
We knew we was just gonna rock and go home.
- * It goes one for the money, two for the show *
* Jam Master Jay, Darryl and Joe! *
- Everybody, put your hands in the air.
We going from side to side. Everybody!
- Your "Saturday Night Live"
was really some superstars stuff.
It was, like, validation for us,
that we're a legit culture.
We have just as much right to be accepted
as a legitimate form of entertainment
as everybody else.
[Run-DMC's "Walk This Way"]
- * Like this! *
- Hollis crew in effect, bro.
- Run-DMC's greatness in hip-hop is,
we're pioneers of recorded rap.
But we didn't create it.
Like, we celebrate everybody before.
I'm very honored to be talking about
being on "Saturday Night Live," only because I know
that the Funky Four did it first.
- Here's our host, Deborah Harry.
Let's hear it.
- * Looking back over the years *
* I guess I shedded some tears *
"Saturday Night Live," I have to say,
is responsible for a lot of things.
But we in turn brought something very special
to "Saturday Night Live."
- What might that be?
- Yes.
- Funky Four.
- * Now we're the Funky Four *
- * And I'm the plus one more *
- * And this is the way we go *
- When you're talking about hip-hop culture,
you're talking young teenagers in the streets of New York.
We were playing in every park in New York City.
But we were not just in the South Bronx.
We were headed downtown.
The Funky Four was the one that introduced
hip-hop to punk rockers.
That's how we wind up running into Debbie Harry.
- Hi, I'm Deborah Harry.
Join me this week when I host "Saturday Night Live"
with my special musical guest, Deborah Harry.
- They let us pick our musical guest.
We decided on those guys.
- They were so fresh and entertaining.
It seemed like a great idea.
- Debbie Harry fought for us.
We were innocent-looking.
There were similarities with her
being with an all-male band.
And so this is the reason why she wanted the Funky Four
to be on "Saturday Night Live."
- One minute. One minute to air.
- There was no preperformance or anything.
They said, okay, time for y'all to go on.
- We did it. - And we did it.
- 20 seconds.
- Do you remember what was going through your head
at the moment?
- What was going on through my head at the time
was I was pregnant.
My whole life was flashing in front of me at that time.
But we had to go on, you know, with the show.
- Three, two, one. - And dissolve.
- Oh, the next group are among the best
street rappers in the country.
Please welcome my friends from the Bronx,
the Funky Four Plus One More.
[applause]
[Funky Four Plus One's "That's the Joint"]
* *
- * Ha ha *
* Yeah *
* If you're ready for this *
* Say you're ready for this
- With DJ Breakout being the first DJ
to be in front of a camera, they didn't know what to do.
They didn't know how to put the music through.
You're talking about-- this is the first time
that rap music is on TV.
- Nobody has ever heard of scratching.
Try to explain that to somebody.
And it's really hard.
- * We gotta prove to the world that we're for real *
* We gotta prove to everybody we know the real deal *
* We got golden voices and hearts of steel *
* Cause we're five emcees that got to be real *
* We wanna hear the party people yell Sugar Hill *
- And at that time, we didn't know the impact of what we did
to become the first rap group, you know, to ever
be on national television.
That is the beginning of everything.
Just learn the culture.
Learn how all of this came.
There's a saying that Grandmaster Caz always said
hip-hop didn't invent anything,
but we reinvented everything.
.
- This monologue will lead us to a commercial.
And go one.
Send him out. Ready five.
Announce.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Billie Eilish.
- I was hosting, and I was the musical guest,
which I never, ever thought would ever happen--ever.
Even, like, the first time I played here.
- Nobody in your career tells you, like,
now might not be the right time.
Like, if you get the "SNL" offer,
you're like, oh, we gotta do that.
- "SNL" is, like, always the biggest deal.
Dude, like, people don't understand.
Like, "SNL" is hard.
It's a lot of work and very challenging.
And you don't really sleep much.
And everyone is on edge, but in a good, exciting way,
but a terrifying way.
- Fade to black.
Ready one, up on one.
And cue.
- Once again, Megan Thee Stallion.
[cheers and applause]
- When the musical guest is the host,
there is no mistaking or questioning, like,
the caliber of performer that you are.
- I can't tell y'all how excited I am to be here.
[energetic rock music]
* *
- Double duty, it's meant for a dream board.
You know, you just never really expect it to actually happen.
* *
- I do remember getting the opportunity
to host "SNL" for the first time.
And it was right after a controversial moment
in my career where a lot of people
were kind of afraid to work with me,
which is when Lorne gets excited to work
with you the most.
There are a few subjects we're not gonna get into tonight.
I'm not gonna do Hannah Montana.
But I can give you an update on what she's been up to.
She was murdered.
And also, we went back and forth on this.
But, guys, I just don't think we should do
that "Wrecking Ball" sketch.
- What? Miley, come on! My mom is here!
- I was kind of seen as being, like, not quite understood
or not quite predictable, which is really
what this show is all about.
He always says, it's the tightrope walk.
They wanna see you dangle. They don't wanna see you fall.
- [clears throat] - You good?
All right, we're set.
- There is no getting around, you know,
kind of the guts of the show is,
do you have it or do you not?
And you see people for who and what they are.
- Bad Bunny had such a monster year.
We were just like, oh, it'd be really fun to have him host.
And again, it goes back to the musicians
that you don't normally see doing comedy.
- [speaking Spanish]
- If you're the host and music, you have zero time off.
And I think that's explained to them too.
We just want you to know, it's gonna be very--
- So Monday is-- writer's pitch to the host
ideas and stuff like that.
They'll meet with the monologue team
and different writers.
- I think everyone that does the monologue is
a bit worried about the monologue,
I think rightfully so, because if it's rubbish,
it kicks the show off and doesn't set a very good tone.
So you've gotta get that right.
You go to all the writer's rooms,
and they give you the ideas.
And you go like, being kind of English
and kind of try and be nice to people,
you don't say that's shit, basically.
I'm never gonna do that.
You say, hmm, that's interesting.
I'll think about that.
- Three, two--
- Hi, I'm Bad Bunny.
And I'm the host and musical guest this week on "SNL."
- Tuesday, they shoot promos in the morning,
and then they come in and meet with individual writers
to determine sketches.
- It's a very stupid sketch.
- You're just, like, it's bonkers.
- It's bonkers.
- Then table read is on Wednesday.
You read a ton of sketches,
just at the table with everyone who's on the show.
Everyone who's behind the scenes,
from the gaffer to Lorne.
You see naturally in the room what
feels like it's gonna crush and what may end up
on the back burner, as far as sketches.
- My name is Benito, and I'm so excited to be
here on "Sabado Gigante."
- And you run with those 12 to 15 sketches,
and you start developing those a little bit further.
But if you're host and musical guest,
then Thursday is kind of crazy.
- Thursday morning, the musician comes in.
And they begin an audio sound check.
- * Something I'm not *
* But something I can be *
* Something I wait for *
* Something I'm made for *
* Mm *
[Billie Eilish's "What Was I Made For?"]
* Something I'm made for *
Does it sound really bad?
all: No.
- Whoo!
- My God!
- And once audio is happy,
then we turn that into a cam rehearsal.
[violin melody]
- I wanna watch you separate. - Okay.
- Once you sound check the two songs,
you camera block the two songs.
And then you keep blocking sketches.
- From TaskRabbit. I'm here with the 800 DVDs.
And you can start bringing them in.
- I'm here with the 800 DVDs.
- We don't want the DVDs!
- On Friday, the host films a pretape early in the morning
so they have time to edit it by Saturday.
- You rehearse the rest of the show until
probably midnight or 1:00.
- I'm so excited to be here on "Sabado Gigante."
- So you're down here. - Do not look down.
- Mijo does not have depression.
- [speaking Spanish]
- [singing in Spanish]
- Saturday, you start at noon.
Again, musicians have to get up earlier
to make sure everything's okay.
- [singing in Spanish]
- You have to figure out the time of, like,
well, what's the outfit you're gonna wear?
- They're gonna have to wear some--
maybe some absurd clothes, a crazy wig, maybe a mustache.
- Can you wear it in this sketch?
What sketch has to be before your music
so that you can get enough time to prep?
- And then the live show comes.
And it's just like, oh, yeah, so your four minutes
has gone down to 1:25.
It's all good. We're gonna change you here.
We're gonna change you there.
- You have to run from the music sketch,
and you're all covered in sweat,
and change to be the host and the musical guest.
- It just is the most super-intense week.
- You basically don't know what's gonna happen
until 11:30 p.m. when the show is about to start.
Like, things are constantly changing.
["Saturday Night Live" theme]
- You have time. You have time.
- Time?
[cheering]
[soft upbeat percussive music]
* *
- Get ready.
Five seconds. Four, three, two--
[cheering]
- Bad Bunny!
[cheers and applause]
- And I'm very excited to be here on "Sabado Gigante,"
oh, sorry.
- Does not have depression.
He just like the dark!
- Eh. - Oh!
both: Oh!
* *
- Once again, Bad Bunny.
- Mijo!
[soft piano music]
[upbeat clapping]
- A big thing that I learned is, like, seriously
to trust the process.
Because at the beginning of the week, I was like, what?
Like, how are we going from where--
how are we gonna go from here anywhere?
And then it was, like, truly one of the most fun days
of my life, was that Saturday.
Every part of it was so cool.
I felt like part of a big family.
- Benito!
- Hey!
[applause]
.
- One thing I think is very important is to weave
your convictions into your vocation--whatever it is,
whether you're directing a film or running a camera
or playing guitar in a rock and roll band.
And for a band like Rage,
"SNL" was a perfect opportunity to do that.
Being on "SNL" is something that was valued.
It was a part of the DNA of American culture
and entertainment.
So when the offer came to be on it, we were like,
we'd be happy to.
But Rage never did things in a normal way.
So we were thinking like, how do we make this
into some sort of crazy performance-art thing?
Then we heard that Steve Forbes was going to be the host.
- It has been a hectic last few months.
As many of you may know, I was campaigning
for the Republican nomination for the presidency
of the United States.
- He had just been
a Republican candidate for president.
You know, he's Forbes of "Forbes" magazine.
He's one of the richest people in America.
And one of the driest and most boring humans
to ever walk the face of the Earth
was going to be hosting "SNL" when Rage Against the Machine
was gonna be performing. How ironic.
Let's see how that works out.
[heavy metal riff]
So the day of rehearsal, we had already had
the upside-down American flags,
the Navy distress signal, on our amplifiers.
They asked us to please remove the flags from the amplifiers
because, one, advertisers would be upset.
And, two, it was with Steve Forbes,
and that might be a weird vibe.
We were like, you invited Rage Against the Machine--
the "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me" band--
and then said, don't do the thing.
Just to be clear, that's what you're saying right now.
Great.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Steve Forbes.
[cheers and applause]
- So the night of the show comes,
and our roadies are primed.
- We're about to rock "Bulls on Parade,"
and our roadies put the upside-down flags
back up onto the amplifiers.
- The stage manager is barking into his headset,
like, take those down right now.
- Our roadies have been told to, like, defend the perimeter.
There's 35 seconds till we're live.
The stage manager sends the "SNL" crew.
There's a quick scrum on stage.
- Unfortunately, the burly New York City union men
are able to wrestle the flags off of the amplifiers
with seven seconds to go before we go live.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Rage Against the Machine.
[cheers and applause]
[Rage Against the Machine's "Bulls On Parade"]
* *
- It's a rocking performance.
We go back to the dressing room and it's tense.
Our dressing room is right across the hall
from Steve Forbes.
- * Come wit' it now *
- Time goes by.
A representative of "SNL" comes to the door
and says, uh, it looks like the show's running a little long.
And we're gonna cut your second number.
And then they leave us alone.
That was their mistake.
- * Come wit' it now *
* *
* Come wit' it now *
- Timmy C doesn't like things like that.
And he expresses himself.
And so what he did was, he took one of the American flags,
and he tore it up and knotted it into a ball.
You might call it a weapon.
And he entered Steve Forbes' dressing room
across the way to attack him.
[knock at door]
- That's strange.
Nobody even knows that we're here yet.
- I'll go get it. - Okay.
- Steve Forbes was not in his dressing room,
but his family was.
So Timmy launches his American flag ball rocket
at aunts, cousins, wives, children.
- * They rally 'round the family *
* With a pocket full of shells *
- Fortunately, the kind of solid integrity of it
is not so great.
So it's kind of like--it flaps apart, hurting no one.
However, did I mention before that Steve Forbes
had just been a presidential candidate?
The hallway floods with Secret Service.
- * Bulls on parade *
- We're now locked in our room.
They're protecting Steve Forbes and his family.
* *
[cheers and applause]
And then we are escorted out and put on the sidewalk
at 30 Rock there.
- I'd like to thank Rage Against the Machine, the cast.
- You might notice Rage is not in the farewells
on that particular show.
- Thank you. [cheers and applause]
- I still went to the after party.
[laughs]
["Saturday Night Live" theme]
.
- Probably the most famous moment of protest on "SNL"
was Sinéad O'Connor.
She really was a one-woman Rage Against the Machine.
- * We used to go out walking hand in hand *
* You told me all the big things you had planned *
- I remember it all fairly vividly.
Tim Robbins was hosting.
He wanted to do some pieces on GE and PCBs
in the Hudson, which was a serious issue.
- As you know, GE owns NBC.
Yes, GE owns quite a few interesting companies.
- Uh, Tim? - Yeah, Davey?
- Would you mind coming backstage?
Lorne wants to see you.
- Tim, I--I--I'm upset.
- Why? Because I'm attacking GE?
- Yes. - Why?
Because GE pays your check, Lorne?
- Yes.
And so that was the political thing
that was happening that week.
- Once again, Sinéad O'Connor.
[applause]
- I was really excited Sinéad was coming on.
- She had a full orchestra on the first song,
and then singing a cappella on the second song.
With the camera block on Thursday,
she saw the cameras switching and this and that.
And she said, no.
For the second song, I just want one camera on me--
tightening, tightening, tightening.
- * Through child abuse *
- And I could hear on the PL, it's like, well,
that's kind of deadly television.
But all right, we'll do it.
- * Of good *
- And then she held up a picture of a baby.
- I actually thought, like, should she hold up a photo?
Like, it was more that it was not--it was not a common thing
that people add things to their music set.
- We kind of looked at it as, like, some artistic statement
that she's making, not even thinking it was political.
And then the air show comes.
- Once again, Sinéad O'Connor.
- Okay.
[cheers and applause]
- * War in the east *
* War in the west *
* War up north *
* War down south *
* There's war and the rumors of war *
* Until that day *
* There is no continent which will know peace *
* Children *
* Fight *
* We find it necessary *
* We know we will win *
* We have confidence in the victory *
* Of good *
* Over evil *
Fight the real enemy.
- I think I heard the director say something like,
holy shit, she just ripped up the Pope on national TV.
- We were standing right where you're--right behind you,
watching, right there.
I looked up, and everyone's, like, mouths have dropped.
And everyone's, like, freaking out.
- Well, another controversy for singer Sinéad O'Connor,
as she strikes a sour note with Catholics.
A steamroller smashed
200 of her albums, cassettes, and CDs.
- If you missed it, Tim Robbins was host.
And Sinéad O'Connor didn't exactly
make friends with the Pope.
Lighten up, Sinéad. [laughs]
- So they were blaming Lorne and--and us.
But, you know, we explained that she did it on her own.
And she was kind of right.
- Sirens were going off in the background
in the control room and all that stuff.
There was a part of me
that just admired the bravery of what she'd done,
and also the absolute sincerity of it.
- She was speaking to her own abuse
that she had endured in the Catholic Church,
and speaking for children and young people
who had been molested, you know, through the centuries.
And she paid the price for it.
- That picture is of him.
And when he did his tour of Ireland,
Ireland has the highest incidence
in Europe of child abuse.
I experienced it myself.
And I find his presence in Ireland
telling the young people of Ireland
that he loved them hilarious.
* Since then you have *
* Taken me for granted *
[soft acoustic music]
[upbeat rock music]
* Well, let me tell you that you were no *
* Life raft to me *
- I remember thinking, like, whoa.
She's so strong.
Like, I could never be as strong as someone
with that type of political view
that you would take that kind of a stance.
I just remember being sort of mesmerized by her.
- * I'll meet you later *
* In somebody's office *
* Oh, whoa, whoa *
* *
- It was another instance of the artist
with their principles and values
in a very impactful way,
throwing their lives and their career on the line
for this statement.
* *
[cheers and applause]
.
- There's a lot of ways music is used in the show.
I mean, I think that's the beauty of sketch.
It allows you to embrace the possibilities of anything.
- Doing impressions of iconic musicians
is, like, kind of a staple.
Like, that's really become so much of the language of "SNL."
- It was something that really did
start organically, with Belushi showing off
a few musical impressions.
- * Seems like I've gotta have a change of scene *
* 'Cause every night I have the strangest dream *
- Joe Cocker was really outrageous.
John would pick up on something like that
and just exaggerate it.
- * By with a little help from my friends *
- * Oh, you know I'm gonna get my friend *
- * By with a little help from my friends *
- * Whoa, whoa, whoa *
- * By with a little help from my friends *
* Ooh, ooh, ooh *
[Joe Cocker's "With a Little Help From My Friends"]
- Belushi had a way of overdoing everything.
- * Turn it up please *
- * Yes, I'm doing all right *
* Yes, I'm doing all right *
- * Don't do no wrong *
- * Yes, I'm feeling all right *
- * Oh, no *
- * Yes, I'm feeling all right *
- * Come on *
[cheers and applause]
- Do you have any favorite "SNL"
impersonations of musicians?
- Ooh.
I mean, obviously, Eddie's Stevie is like--
that's like another level.
- Listen, listen.
* My cherie amour distant as the Milky Way *
Try that.
[cheers and applause]
- You'd see Stevie on "Ed Sullivan,"
and you'd see Stevie on, you know, "Midnight Special."
And he was the biggest thing around then.
But I don't have to study somebody
to do an impression of them.
I have it as soon as I see it.
* Ebony and ivory *
both: * Live together in perfect harmony *
- "Ebony and Ivory" was a huge song.
You know, that was a big song.
So Eddie comes up with the idea,
let's do "Ebony and Ivory."
Eddie goes, I'll do Stevie.
I said, I'll play Frank Sinatra.
And we'll do our version of it.
And we fleshed it out.
Read-through, it was a little harsh,
and I thought a little offensive to Frank Sinatra.
Frank Sinatra is a hero if you're
a North Jersey Italian American.
I remember as a kid we would go to the barber shop
in Bloomfield, New Jersey.
And when you'd go in, there'd be a picture of two people,
the Pope and Frank Sinatra.
And Frank Sinatra's picture was above the Pope's, you know.
So I was scared to offend Mr. Sinatra.
- We're all set to record as soon as he gets here,
Mr. Sinatra.
- Good, good, good.
[applause]
It was harsh, but I wanted it to be funny,
so the pressure was on.
- Excuse me, Mr. Sinatra, sir.
He's here. - Show him in.
- Yes, sir.
- And then it's the moment and you're live.
And the cards go up.
And you've gotta hit the voice.
You gotta hit the mannerisms.
Stevie Wonder, Stevie Wonder, you are aptly named.
Like I said many times, you are truly a wonder.
- Thanks a lot, Frank.
- It was scary as anything you could possibly imagine.
- * I am dark and you are light *
- * You are blind as a bat and I have sight *
- Piscopo can sing, and Eddie Murphy
solidified that, because his version of Stevie
is so perfect.
It's so good.
It's not funny because he's dressed as Stevie Wonder.
It's funny because he's pulling off
the musicality of Stevie Wonder.
- * Ebony and ivory *
- That's good. That's good, Steve.
- * Just living in perfect harmony *
- * We're talking salt and pepper *
* Sammy and Dean *
- Steve loved it from the-- because nobody had done Steve.
People were just telling him, he's going like this.
Because he couldn't see it.
But--but he loved the idea of somebody imitating him.
- I heard that Frank Sinatra was watching it,
and he liked it.
You know, thank God he liked it--
and that his beautiful daughters Tina and Nancy said,
Dad, go to the studio. Walk in on Piscopo now.
Yeah, I would have fainted.
I would have had a coronary right there.
All right, kid, that's enough. Out.
- * You are white *
- * You are Black *
- * And who cares *
Who cares, baby?
[applause]
- I think the majority of the people that work at "SNL"
respect and idolize
most of those people that they're doing.
- Hi. I'm Sean Evans.
I'm joined today by Beyoncé Knowles Carter.
I cannot believe you're on "Hot Ones."
- No, I feel you.
I still can't tell if this is beneath me.
You wanna make sure that the people that you're doing
are not offended, but know that, like, you're having fun.
- * "Prince Show" *
- * Everybody wants to be free *
- * It's Prince, yo *
- I already loved Destiny's Child,
and then I was a fan of Beyoncé.
- * Come and take a ride with me *
- I was trying to do the notes that she would do.
* It's Prince, yo *
Because the way it was written,
she would not have sung it that way.
both: * Climb the rainbow of truth *
- I was trying to convey, I am a fan,
I am not making fun of anybody.
- My musical impressions without a doubt
started my whole career.
I love The Rolling Stones, I love Mick Jagger.
And Lorne said, Mick is looking to do a sketch.
I go, cool.
And I did an impression of Mick.
I go, maybe I can do a sketch for him in the mirror
opposite Mick Jagger.
And I'm like, I'm doing an impression and--
and Lorne goes, please don't do that.
It's been done a zillion times.
Groucho Marx did it.
Lucille Ball has done it.
I go with a bunch of ideas. I go, here you go.
And Lorne goes, no, you go talk to him.
I go, oh, I don't wanna do that.
You're the producer.
You should go talk to Mick Jagger.
I'm afraid of Mick Jagger.
He's like, just go talk to him.
So I go in. I'm nervous. I go, hello.
- We kind of pitched each other ideas.
And we didn't really like any of them.
- I have an idea where me and you work on the beach,
and we're selling suntan lotion.
And he's like, no, I don't wanna do that. No.
Okay, I have another idea where you play Keith,
and Keith cloned himself so that he
could party with himself.
And he goes, no. No, I don't wanna do that.
I go through, like, five or six terrible ideas.
I go, all right. And I'm sweating, flop sweat.
- So I didn't like the ideas. We weren't getting anywhere.
And then Jimmy said--
- I got this other idea where I'm you in the mirror.
And it's like, you know, why are you doing this show?
You've done it in every decade.
- And I said, that sounds great.
- I go, okay.
And I left.
I go, Lorne, good news, bad news.
Mick wants to do the sketch.
Bad news is, it's the mirror. It's me in the mirror.
[applause]
- Here we are, "Saturday Night Live" again.
I mean, what more can I do?
I mean, I did this show in the '70s.
I did it in the '80s.
I did it in the '90s.
And now I'm doing it in--
whatever you call this decade.
I mean--I mean, think.
Think.
- Come on, Mick.
Come on. You can do this, right?
Yeah. - That's not the point.
I mean, I've done this.
That's the problem. I've done it.
- All right, well, what were you planning on doing?
- Well, I was gonna come out.
And I'd go like that, and like that.
- Right.
- And then I was gonna do maybe, like--
like that. - Yeah, pretty good.
- Right. - Yeah, that's pretty good.
Yeah, right.
- And then the thing with the Stones,
like punching the air like that.
- Yeah, that's pretty good. Right.
What else? What else have you got?
- Well, I dunno. Uh, pointing fingers.
We do pointing fingers.
- Yeah, what's pointing fingers?
- You know, like...
* I'm pointing my fingers *
- * And I'm pointing my fingers, pointing at you *
- That's great.
- Right, it's a little--
[cheers and applause]
- A little--a little stale.
- A little stale? - Yeah.
We did the sketch, me and Mick Jagger, and the place shook.
I remember it. I remember it to this day.
- By the way, you look great.
- No, no. We look great.
- Oh, yeah.
Hey, let's--let's go over pointing fingers again, okay?
- Ah, cool. - Okay.
- * And I point *
* My finger *
* I'm pointing, pointing, pointing, pointing at you *
[cheers and applause]
- And I don't know if it's real or if I just thought it
in my head, but when I got off the stage, everything was hot.
And everyone was clapping.
And the thing was kind of vibrating.
It was one of the most surreal moments of my life.
I'll never forget that.
And I was like, whew, that will never happen again.
And--and it didn't.
.
- They said I couldn't light my joint,
you know what I'm saying?
But we ain't going out like that.
- We ain't going out.
- When it's live television, you know,
you gotta be ready for things to go left or right.
- We've got a great show, and I totally care
that I'm here, because it's the coolest
fucking thing--oop! [audience oohing]
- * Why don't presidents fight the war *
* Why do they always send the poor *
- Fuck you!
- I had never seen "SNL" until I was on it.
- Here's Elvis Costello.
- In the dress rehearsal, we did a song
that was on my first album.
But I thought it sounded a little too slow.
It was a medium tempo song, and I didn't think
it was exciting enough.
And I realized, this show is live.
We can do anything we want.
- * Calling Mister Oswald with the swastika tattoo *
* There is a vacancy waiting in the... *
Stop!
I'm sorry, ladies and gentlemen.
There's no reason to do this song here.
- When he stopped, the hubbub in the studio
was like, oh, my God.
Oh, my God, what's gonna happen?
You could hear it.
- "Radio, Radio." - Okay.
- One, two, three, four.
[Elvis Costello's "Radio, Radio"]
- With the Elvis thing, I was sitting
with Dan Aykroyd on Home Base.
We were just watching.
And I went, oh, I think maybe we're being hijacked.
- * I was tuning in the shine on the light night dial *
* Doing anything my radio advised *
* With every one of those late night stations *
* Playing songs, bringing tears to my eyes *
All of this stuff, it builds up in legend in the retelling.
But I didn't come out there to give
a political lecture, you know.
I came out to kind of shake it up.
* So you had better do as you are told *
* You'd better listen to the radio *
* *
* Wonderful radio *
As we finished the song, the initial reaction in the moment
was, I think we'd better get out of here.
* *
[applause]
Somewhere in it, somebody said in anger,
you'll never work on American television again.
But the idea I was banned from television is nonsense.
- He's back. Elvis Costello.
- * Veronica *
[Elvis Costello's "Veronica"]
* Veronica *
- Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis Costello.
- * To the burning forests in the hills of AstroTurf *
* The other side of summer *
both: Ladies and gentlemen, Beastie Boys.
[cheers and applause]
[Beastie Boys' "Sabotage"]
* *
- * I can't stand it-- *
[cheers and applause]
- I'm sorry, ladies and gentlemen,
but there's just really no reason
to do this song here tonight.
One two, three, four!
["Radio, Radio"]
* *
- * I was tuning in the shine of the light night dial *
* Doing anything my radio advised *
- I'll read it occasionally in the "Post,"
so-and-so is banned for life.
And no, we've never banned anyone.
We're way too crass and opportunistic.
If something's hot, we're gonna go for it and have it on.
- We are rare.
Taking nothing away from all the other shows,
they have the opportunity to fix something.
We don't.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Ashlee Simpson.
- I had heard rumblings that Ashlee had a sore throat
or wasn't feeling well.
But it seemed okay.
- At dress rehearsal, she had problems with her voice.
And it was decreed that she will lip sync
for the second song just to save her voice.
And then somehow, between dress and air,
it was decreed that she will lip sync both songs.
I mean, I can hear myself being fired by saying--anyway.
- * On a Monday I am waiting *
* On Tuesday *
- The first song went fine.
And then the second song happened.
- Once again, Ashlee Simpson.
- And the two guitarists and the bass all launch
into song two,
and the drummer has cued up song one.
And I heard the director say something like, holy shit!
- Uh-oh.
- * On a Monday *
- Oh, shit. - Ooh.
- Fuh--wrong song, wrong song.
- This is bad.
[rock music]
They should play it. Play it.
- And it was just like, you know, those old movies
of two locomotives hitting each other full bore.
* *
- What are we doing?
I don't know. She should sing.
- People were people running in and out of the studio,
and it just seemed like the show came to a screeching halt.
- I was in my basement, 13 years old,
sexually confused because Jude Law was the host.
- And it's on three.
- In the moment of it happening, like,
you weren't really sure what was going on.
- She's walking off the stage.
What am I doing? Am I going to bumper?
Should I go to bumper? - Stand by.
- It's one of those things where it can either go
one way if all goes well,
or be the complete opposite if it doesn't.
- If you were watching "Saturday Night Live"
last weekend on Halloween night, you may have
noticed that not all of the show stayed on the air live.
A punk band called Fear,
booked as the show's musical guests,
brought on a contingent of their fans
near the end of the program.
Joining us now is Dick Ebersol,
who is the executive producer of "Saturday Night Live."
Do you plan to cut away from the live show and go to...
- No. No, no. - Some sort of piece of tape?
.
- One, two, three, four!
[Fear's "I Don't Care About You"]
* I'm from South Street Philadelphia *
* I'm from Avenue C *
* I've seen empty eyes *
* Waiting to freeze *
* I'm from the Bowery too *
* I don't care about you *
- John Belushi found out about us.
He liked our music.
He became a fan of ours.
Good Lord, here we are, this riff-raff ragtag bunch.
We don't have distribution.
We had a record deal with "Slash" magazine.
Pretty much, that was it.
- Through Belushi, Fear was booked,
with the understanding, I think, that Belushi
was gonna make a cameo.
- And that was a chance for, like, this really kind of
hardcore punk to be on nationwide television
in a way that most people hadn't seen before.
It was kind of a dangerous move.
- We thought it was crazy shit that John Belushi
was making them put on TV.
- He wasn't even a cast member anymore in 1981.
But what a soldier for punk that he was like,
I'm gonna get this band on TV.
[energetic punk rock music]
- So I remember having to talk to Lee Ving, the lead singer,
about his lyrics.
- * She just wants my beef bologna *
- She just likes my beef bologna.
- * Beef, beef, beef-- beef bologna *
- Beef, beef, beef-- beef bologna.
- * She don't want no chicken, don't want a roast *
* She just wants my double dose *
* Of beef, beef, beef *
* Beef bologna! * - Beef bologna.
- It was one of the great phone calls.
And then I heard that Belushi was
gonna bring in a crew from Washington
to dance around the stage.
- You see, I've got a bad reputation around NBC
as a troublemaker.
But although I could easily do it, I would never, never--
oh, what's the word I'm looking for--
betray the network's trust in me.
- John felt that in order to allow it to look
the way that it looks genuinely,
there had to be this contingent.
- I think it's the only time up to that point in the show
that there had been participatory dancing
during the musical act,
which I don't think I'd really figured out in my head
what slam-dancing was, so talk about naive.
- They really didn't have a complete idea of what
it was gonna be, and they especially didn't have
a very in-depth idea of what the situation
was gonna be between this first 12 rows and the band.
- They're really nice people, you know.
[laughs]
They--they are--hmm.
They look very frightening, but they're really very nice.
Our Halloween night guest--
and by the way, tonight, look out for surprises.
Ladies and gentlemen, Fear.
- * My baby *
* Talkin' 'bout a low-down skag-a-doo *
* Yeah *
- We come on to play our first sequence,
and Mr. and Mrs. Normal America,
who usually go see "Saturday Night Live,"
they're sort of looking askance at the punk rockers,
wondering what the hell this is.
And I picked my guitar up.
We count them off.
One-two-three-four, one-two-three-four!
* Don't like cash, she don't like phonies *
* She don't like junkies, she don't like *
[Fear's "Beef Bologna"]
* Beef, beef, beef, beef bologna *
* *
Kids are just tossing each other through the air,
like there's gonna be no tomorrow.
* Don't like salami, she don't want pastrami *
* She don't want no chicken, she don't want no roast *
* She just wants a double dose of my *
* Beef, beef, beef, beef bologna *
* Beef, beef, beef *
Mr. and Mrs. Tourist America are back,
and they're looking at this.
By God, what is this?
Oh, Jesus. We're gonna die.
- * New York's all right if you like saxophone *
- John just looks at us and goes...
- I wish the tape would show it,
because John was part of it, God rest his soul.
- One-two-three-four, one-two-three-four!
* Many of us, there's so many of us *
* There's so many, there's so many of us *
- At the end of the Fear performance,
I jump up on the stage.
And I'm in the back, like, when it gets--
I act like I'm with the group.
I was just playing.
* *
- Good or bad, those kind of moments are great.
And I think that's what's great about "Saturday Night Live."
I mean, we're still talking about that moment right now.
There's been a thousand bands on other TV shows
that we're not talking about.
So that meant something to a lot of people.
- But there wasn't a riot.
I mean, they didn't destroy equipment.
I mean, that was a good story.
But, in other words, they were totally nice people
and acted totally professionally.
- * I don't care about you *
* No *
* I don't care about you *
It was a hallmark for punk rock music.
It didn't have to be in some armpit basement somewhere.
It could now be on a legitimate stage.
And it was John's doing.
John was the best thing that ever happened to us.
I love him like a brother, and I always will.
* Well he died while we just stood there looking at him *
May he rest in peace. I love you, John.
Thank you, brother.
* Oh-wee *
* I don't care about you *
[cheers and applause]
.
- Kanye.
[sighs]
That's all I should have to say, is just Kanye, right?
And we're done with that interview.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Kanye West.
- * I gotta testify *
* Come up in the spot looking extra fly *
- The artist always performed-- no matter who you were,
whether you were Bruce Springsteen or U2 or Madonna--
you always played in front of the brick wall, until Kanye.
There never needs to be a rule that applies.
And "Saturday Night Live,"
which has broken a lot of rules,
was now allowing artists to break one more.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Kanye West.
- * I guess every superhero need his theme music *
* No one man should have all that power *
- It was kind of like a gauntlet had been thrown,
where it's like, that's the best "SNL" performance.
And it was that thing of certain artists
coming in and wanting to compete.
- Kanye West was the leader of that.
Whenever somebody would submit their creative
and we'd be like, no, we can't do that.
And they'd be like, well, Kanye did.
- He was always kind of like, nice,
but then also really contentious, you know?
He had no problem telling us
that he found the show incredibly unfunny.
[chuckles]
He would tell us that on the regular.
- Hell no, I ain't doing no motherfucking "SNL" skits.
This is my goddamn life.
[cheering]
This ain't no motherfucking joke.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Kanye West.
- * Hey, I need every bad chick up in equinox *
[tense music]
* *
- Have a good show, guys.
Five, four, three...
- Okay, here we go, folks.
- Two, one.
- We got a great show!
[cheers and applause]
Kanye West is here, so stick around.
We'll be right back.
- Ready three, take three.
Five. - Stand by music.
- Ready three, five. Ready, four.
- Drop the mic. He's walking out.
- What? No. - Let him go.
Let him go. Let him go. Let him go.
- And Kanye's leaving the building, and they had to--
Lorne had to chase him down and go, don't go.
Come on, just come sing the song.
- We talked.
And we just went over what had happened.
I said, didn't you tell everybody that you're on
and that they'll be hearing this stuff?
So we'll be here regardless, and we'll figure it out.
But this is more damaging to you
than it is to us, so I think you should do it.
- * We on a ultralight beam *
* This is a God dream *
- Oh, yeah, that is a MAGA hat, huh?
- Kenan, can you come in a little bit?
- You didn't notice that till now?
- I'm just now noticing. I'm putting it all together.
- Yeah. - He's serious.
- Here we go. Five, four, three, two.
- Hi, I'm Adam Driver, and I'm hosting
the season premiere of "SNL" with musical guest, Kanye West.
- Uh-oh.
Kanye got that look. - Oh, no.
What are you up to, Kanye?
- Oh, he's definitely gonna do something.
- He's saving it for the show.
- Yeah, probably.
Mm!
[chuckles]
- This is the thing about "Saturday Night Live"--
it's really live.
You could go rogue, and some people do.
- I was super-excited to hear that
they were gonna transform "Good Nights" into--
into a Kanye song.
"SNL" band played it at dress with Kanye, killed it.
Everybody was happy.
It was like--it was amazing.
- First episode I moved to New York
exactly eight days prior for this job.
I just remember at air it was like, okay,
it's gonna be my first "Good Nights."
And this--[chuckling]
[soft piano music]
- Thanks to Matt Damon, Rachel Dratch,
Teyana Taylor, Lil Pump, this cast,
these writers, Lorne Michaels.
Once again, Kanye West.
[cheers and applause]
- And then when we got on stage,
he went kind of off-book.
- * Still the kids we used to be *
Hey, y'all come up here with us.
Y'all come up here with us. Y'all come up here.
[indistinct]
* I could cry right now *
* Something inside me right now *
* And the liberals bully you and tell you *
* What you can and cannot wear *
Actually, Blacks weren't always Democrats.
We can't be controlled by monolithic thought.
If someone inspires me and I connect with them,
I don't have to believe in all their policies.
And when I said I'm running 2020,
all my smart friends talked so much shit about me.
And when I saw that man win, I say, see?
I told you. I could have been.
- I was like, I don't wanna be up here for this,
because I don't agree with this.
And standing up here, it looks like
I'm standing in solidarity.
So I was like, don't make any faces.
Neutral face, neutral face.
Everyone's gotta know I'm just fulfilling
my duties as a cast member.
It's like your first day at school.
And you're like, I don't wanna get in trouble.
Y'all told me to come up here. I'm up here.
Then I remember looking around the stage.
Something made me be like, oh, are there other Black people
up here up in the cast?
And I look.
[laughing] And no, I was the only one.
And I thought, they had a meeting.
And so then I'm like, these motherfuckers.
- When he grabbed the mic and was just like, you know,
wandering around, you could see he was, like,
gearing up to say something, I was like, I'm out.
It would have been cool if he just had did the music thing.
And, you know, I don't know, just spoke through the hat,
I guess, because the hat was loud.
- And then they say, I'm in a sunken place.
You wanna see the sunken place?
Okay, I'ma listen to y'all now.
- When it was happening, we kind of went
like, okay, this is Kanye.
But it went on and on and on.
And at one point, it was just me playing, and Kanye.
- If I was concerned about racism,
I would have moved out of America a long time ago.
- I guess my musical instinct just said, keep playing.
Just keep playing.
And I think only a snippet of that actually made it
to air before they went off to the news,
or whatever the heck else.
- Thank y'all for giving me this platform.
I know some of y'all don't agree.
- This is a non-censoring show.
It's one of the last places you do what you wanna do,
whether you're Woody Harrelson or Chappelle or Ramy.
You know, as long as they don't swear, break the FCC rules--
because people do forget we're broadcast.
They think we're HBO
where you can say swear words and stuff like that.
And it's like, as long as you don't do that,
.
[slow jazz music]
* *
- I had just officially moved to New York
right before September 11th.
It was just overwhelming.
[applause]
- No one knew what to do, didn't know where to turn
or what to think or how to be funny and all or laugh.
- I knew that Lorne was going to handle that
in the most thoughtful way,
and in a way that felt right for the show
and for people that needed to watch the show in order to feel
like someone was talking about it,
and also talking about New York.
- I gave it a lot of thought.
The mayor, he agreed to come.
And he brought the fire chief and the head
of the Port Authority.
And they all came to the studio.
[applause]
[Paul Simon's "The Boxer"]
There's something about "The Boxer"
that's about the resilience of New York City.
- * I am just a poor boy *
* Though my story is seldom told *
* I squandered my resistance for a pocket full of mumbles *
* Such are promises *
The thing I remember most was walking from the dressing room,
past a long line of firemen.
I mean, the sadness, that they'd lost colleagues.
Of all the times I did the show,
that might have been the only time I was ever nervous.
[vocalizing]
* *
[cheers and applause]
And then, of course, there's the famous joke
that he wrote with Giuliani.
- When we rehearsed, I knew we needed a joke.
- "Saturday Night Live" is one of our great New York City
institutions, and that's why it's important for you
to do your show tonight.
- Can we be funny?
- Why start now?
[cheers and applause]
- It really was, like, the perfect way to get back in it.
- And it just--kind of like that spirit of, like,
it's New York.
This is what we do.
This is a show.
And we're gonna do this and we're gonna survive.
Lorne really works well when he's given a problem
and he has to solve it, and he's put in the corner.
Like, he'll figure it out.
- Hello. - Whoo!
- Yes. - Yeah.
- [chuckling]
- Let's go.
- And live from Zoom, it's sometime
between March and August.
- Yeah!
["Saturday Night Live" theme]
* *
- It's "Saturday Night Live."
- Um, as you might have noticed,
this is a little scary.
There was never any point in which I wasn't coming back.
I just knew that if we worked at it somehow,
we'd be able to figure it out.
- On some level, it was comforting to get the call
from Lorne that we were going back.
And then it was completely confusing and confounding
of how we were gonna do it.
Morgan Wallen was maybe gonna be a risky person to have
in the building because of the way
COVID regulations were back then.
It wasn't the best idea to, like, go to
a college party and, um, suck face with people.
And it became this big story.
- Rising country star Morgan Wallen
was seen on social media partying without a mask.
He actually was canceled from the show.
- Have you booked another musical guest?
- Yeah, I, uh--
- You have 48 hours till the show.
- We're in the--we're still in the middle of it.
Calling somebody on a Thursday to be here for Friday,
you know, is complicated.
- Yeah.
- It has to be people who are ready to go.
- When Lorne called on Wednesday,
I had to call my band and fly them in.
And we didn't rehearse till Thursday.
And then we had to fly to New York, I think, that night.
People were kind of wondering, well,
what song are you gonna do?
What does Lorne want us to do?
And it was such a blessing for Lorne to just say,
he can do whatever he wants.
But yeah, I don't think a lot of people
would have enjoyed the tension of having two days to prepare
to play on live television. [laughs]
I had a couple ideas of things to do.
One of them was to reference the pandemic in some way.
And I found this old blues song to reference
the 1918 flu pandemic.
- * Great disease was mighty *
* And the people were sick everywhere *
* It was an epidemic *
* It floated through the air *
[energetic guitar strumming]
- All right, you guys good? - Yeah.
- Okay, cool. Let's do it.
Here we go. In five, four, three, two, one.
[Jack White's "Lazaretto"]
* *
- The entire week was wild, because a month before
I had done a fast of, like, five days.
And I noticed something happened on the third day.
I had this immense amount of energy.
You actually get filled with energy
because your body is trying to get you out and get you fed.
So on Wednesday, when I got the call,
I decided to fast all the way until I performed
on "Saturday Night Live."
* *
By the time we got to the 8:00 rehearsal,
my manager was like, you're gonna pass out
on stage on live television.
[rhythmic clapping]
- Coming back in ten.
- And I was on fire.
I was ready to, like, tackle a footballteam
before we went out.
It was exactly what I hoped was gonna happen.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Jack White.
- * The great disease was mighty *
[sparse guitar strumming]
* And people were sick everywhere *
[heavy rock music]
* The great disease was mighty *
* And people were sick everywhere *
* *
* Yeah, it was an epidemic *
* And it traveled through the air *
* *
It felt good to talk about that and compare this
to something that had happened 100 years ago.
It's just so similar, and we were
going through it once again.
* *
* Let's have a ball *
* Take our sweet little time about it *
* *
* Everybody in the place can just get out *
* We'll get clean together *
* And I'll find me a soapbox where I can shout it *
* It's gonna sound like this *
* *
I felt kind of that responsibility of,
I haven't seen anything on TV during this whole COVID thing
that I saw and said, man, that makes me miss live music.
Whatever I do, I don't even care
what the song is, I'm going to try to emote that to people.
Like, this is what we're missing right now.
Whatever band or whatever kind of music you like,
this is what I'm hoping that can give you that energy.
And it felt so good.
* *
.
[gentle music]
* *
- The legacy is unspeakable.
I really can't think of another thing
that's as powerful and inspirational and huge
as "SNL" is.
* *
- I think there was something spiritually important
about Studio 8H because it was built for music.
It was built for the NBC Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Arturo Toscanini.
And it is situated and built like a symphony space.
* *
- I just think it's all of the people
that you've ever looked up to have performed on that stage.
It's just such a magical place.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Philip Glass
and the Philip Glass Ensemble.
[cheers and applause]
[Phillip Glass's "Glassworks: IV. Rubric"]
[thrilling electronic music]
* *
- "SNL" has served as a time capsule
through the decades for America.
* *
From introducing new artists to one-hit wonders
to making careers.
- I mean, if you think about it,
what you've got is something which
wouldn't have existed if it hadn't been
for "Saturday Night Live."
You've got this huge, broad, popular music library
of performances from this period.
* *
- You know, when the music changes, it changes.
And you can say, that's not really music.
But if it's the music, it's the music.
And the show has to look and sound like today.
You should be able to look at a rerun
and tell what was going on in the country.
- I think "SNL" has been that enduring thing.
So many musicians' careers can be distilled down to, like,
the first times they were on "SNL."
[soft dramatic music]
- It's really just fertile ground for an artist
to really express themselves.
- It's so important.
It's just as important right now to perform on "SNL"
as it was 50 years ago, 20 years ago.
- If I stood on the floor at 8H tonight and watched them
do a show at my age, after everything I've seen and done,
I would feel just as much excitement.
- * How can I overcome negative energy *
* While I give infinity and survive *
[cheers and applause]
- It is impossible to describe,
and I get chills even talking about it right now.
- Ladies and gentlemen, you are so lucky tonight.
- Charlie XCX.
- Tame Impala. - Lil Wayne.
- Justin Bieber.
- Rihanna. - Arctic Monkeys.
- Oasis. - Lauryn Hill.
- Garth Brooks. - Metallica.
- Spice Girls.
- Salt-N-Pepa.
- Bon Jovi.
- The Smashing Pumpkins.
- Public Enemy. - Public Enemy.
- Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
- Aretha Franklin. - Bob Dylan.
- Billy Joel. - Elton John.
- Willie Nelson.
- LL Cool J. - Tom Waits.
[soft exciting music]
- Anybody who's ever been to a live concert
can attest that when you're getting something closer
to the source, the more powerful
an emotional impact it's going to have on you.
- * All *
* That you turned out to *
* Be *
* Oh, yeah *
* Mm-hmm *
[cheers and applause]
- I think it's important for people
to see live music on television.
- * Hey, Jude *
* Don't make it bad *
* Take a sad song *
* And make it better *
- When you see a human being on a stage
actually doing the thing, it can be inspiring,
because it seems accessible in a way.
[The Beatles' "Hey Jude"]
Like, you watch that guitar player and you think,
okay, he's just holding a piece of wood with wires.
I'm gonna go get one of those things
and learn how to do it like that guy.
- * Upon your shoulder *
- I think it inspires a younger generation of people
to go out and fucking try to do it.
- * Nah nah-nah *
* Nah-nah nah-nah *
* Hey, Jude *
- * Oh, you sound so sweet tonight *
* Oh, yeah *
* Nah-nah nah-nah *
* Hey, Jude *
* One more time *
* Yeah, baby *
* Come on *
- * Nah-nah nah-nah * - * Come one *
* I can't stop it now *
* I just can't stop it *
- * Nah nah-nah *
* Nah-nah nah-nah *
* Hey, Jude * - * It's so good today *
* I love you *
* *
[cheers and applause]