Ariana Grande Returns to Host as Jelly Roll, Chappell Roan, Stevie Nicks & More Set as First ‘SNL’ Season 50 Musical Guests

Katie Atkinson
·2 min read
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Talent for the first five episodes of Saturday Night Live‘s 50th season was announced Wednesday (Sept. 18), with Ariana Grande returning as host on Oct. 12.

The first episode of the landmark season on Sept. 28 will feature Hacks star Jean Smart as host joined by first-time musical guest Jelly Roll. Somehow, the six-time Emmy-winning Smart — who just won outstanding lead actress in a comedy series for a third time for her portrayal of Deborah Vance on the HBO/Max series — has never hosted SNL previously.

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The next show on Oct. 5 will see comedian Nate Bargatze returning as host for a second straight season with Coldplay back as musical guest for an eighth time on the long-running show. The Chris Martin-fronted band first performed on the show in 2001, and their most recent appearance was in 2023.

Episode 3 on Oct. 12 is where Grande will host again — but she’s not pulling double-duty this time, with Stevie Nicks returning as the musical guest for the first time since her one-and-only performance on the show in 1983. Her band Fleetwood Mac has never performed on the show. Grande’s return to the show — where she’s been the musical guest twice and both hosted and performed once in 2016 — comes more than a month before part 1 of her movie musical adaptation Wicked hits theaters on Nov. 22.

The fourth episode on Oct. 19 will be hosted by Michael Keaton with returning musical guest Billie Eilish, while the Nov. 2 show sees John Mulaney back as host with first-time musical guest Chappell Roan. Eilish has previously been a musical guest twice and pulled double-duty as host and performer once in 2021.

The NBC sketch comedy series is expected to pull out all the stops for its 50th season, after putting together a star-studded special for its 40th a decade ago.

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