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Questlove's 50 Years of SNL Music Documentary Digs Into 5 Decades of Studio 8H History
The Tonight Show bandleader and Academy Award-winning filmmaker's project includes interviews from past Musical Guests like Paul Simon, Miley Cyrus, and Debbie Harry, in addition to former SNL cast.
From the very start of Saturday Night Live, the show has welcomed a wide array of talented Musical Guests to the Studio 8H stage, from world-famous artists to up-and-coming acts who are soon to be stars. Sifting through the SNL archives to share its rich musical history is a monumental undertaking — which means it's the perfect job for Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, who helms NBC's upcoming documentary, Ladies & Gentleman ... 50 Years of SNL Music.
Co-directed by Oz Rodriguez, the SNL music documentary features over 50 interviews with today's biggest music artists and icons who performed in the show's earliest days, including Billie Eilish, Miley Cyrus, Paul Simon, and Darryl "DMC" McDaniels. It also includes current and former SNL writers, cast, and crew like Conan O'Brien, Maya Rudolph, and Bill Hader. Per a statement form NBC, the three-hour special broadcast event promises "untold stories behind the culture-defining, groundbreaking and news-making musical performances, sketches and cameos of the past 50 years."
RELATED: Saturday Night Live Is Celebrating 50 Years with a Three-Hour Primetime Special
Ladies & Gentleman ... 50 Years of SNL premieres January 27, only on NBC.
Academy Award-winning director Questlove co-helms 50 Years of SNL Music doc
"Everyone knows the most famous SNL appearances, whether it’s Elvis Costello, Prince or the Beastie Boys, but they’re the tip of a huge iceberg,” Questlove said in a statement. “The process of going back through the incredible archival footage was like being in a time machine, DeLorean or other. I'm so happy I went on the trip and now get to share it with everyone.”
The Roots drummer, record producer, author, and Tonight Show bandleader's 2022 film on the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, Summer of Soul, won the Academy Award for Best Documentary.
Per a 2020 New York Times feature, Questlove's famous record collection is 170,000 albums deep, and he owns more than 600 episodes of the classic music variety show Soul Train. To say the musician is a pop culture archivist would be an understatement, so Ladies & Gentleman ... 50 Years of SNL Music is sure to be an engaging, comprehensive look at musical moments curated from more than 900 episodes.
Who is featured in Questlove's 50 Years of SNL Music documentary?
The doc will feature interviews with past SNL Musical Guests including Miley Cyrus, Bad Bunny, Paul Simon, Mick Jagger, Tom Morello, Kacey Musgraves, Jack White, DJ Breakout, Elvis Costello, Billie Eilish & Finneas, Dave Grohl, Debbie Harry & Chris Stein, Dua Lipa, Darryl DMC McDaniels, Olivia Rodrigo, MC Sha-Rack, Chris Stapleton, Justin Timberlake, and Lee Ving.
It will also feature member of SNL's creative team over the years, including Lorne Michaels, Fred Armisen, Conan O’Brien, Eli Brueggemann, Jane Curtin, Jimmy Fallon, Al Franken, Josiah Gluck, Bill Hader, Steve Higgins, Marci Klein, Melanie Malone, Tom Malone, Mary Ellen Matthews, Eddie Murphy, Ego Nwodim, Liz Patrick, Leon Pendarvis, Lenny Pickett, Joe Piscopo, Andy Samberg, Brian Siedlecki, Akiva Schaffer, Paul Shaffer, Sarah Sherman, Howard Shore, Robert Smigel, Jorma Taccone, Kenan Thompson, Maya Rudolph, Hal Willner and Bowen Yang.
MC Sha-Rack and DJ Breakout hold a particularly significant place in SNL music history: They were members of The Funky 4 Plus One, who were the very first rap group to perform on national television on February 14, 1981. And they did it on Saturday Night Live.
How to watch 50 Years of SNL Music
The three-hour event premieres Monday, January 27, on NBC at 8 p.m. ET/PT, streaming next-day on Peacock.
The SNL 50 music documentary is just one part of Saturday Night Live's sprawling 50th anniversary celebration in early 2025. Peacock has announced a four-part documentary series, Beyond Saturday Night, while NBC will air a three-hour primetime special on Sunday, February 16.
