It's almost hard to believe but the fall television season is right around the corner... which means (of course) that Saturday Night Live is gearing up for its landmark 40th season. Today (Aug. 7), the NBC sketch comedy show went to its Twitter account to crowd source for ideas for this year's hosts and musical guests, which got us here at Music Times thinking of who we'd like to see on the legendary SNL stage.
Between established artists bursting at the seams to promote their fall releases on SNL to the buzz bands about to break in the U.S., there's a big field of potential musical guests (and hosts). But here are 11 acts we'd love to see on Saturday Night Live season 40...
1. Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett
Lady Gaga is an SNL veteran, having pulled double duties just last year in support of Artpop. With a new album Cheek to Cheek dropping on Sept. 23 (four days before SNL's debut), a return to Studio 8H would be great promotion for the jazz album and plenty of buzz for the comedy program itself. Plus, a few jazzy tracks could really class up the joint, don't ya think? (Bonus if Alec Baldwin hosts and does his spot-on Bennett impression.)
2. "Weird Al" Yankovic
The classic parodist has never hosted Saturday Night Live despite 20 years in the comedy and music business. Last month, Yankovic turned the music world on its head with the release of his No. 1 album Mandatory Fun, and we'd love to see him bring his comedy to SNL as a musical guest AND host. The bizarre humor and spot-on pop cultural parodies that would result would definitely be priceless. Just imagine the possibilities...
3. KONGOS
If there's one thing SNL loves more than established musicians, it's groups on the verge of breaking big... and KONGOS are about to hit America hard. The South African alt-rock band is currently climbing the charts with its hit "Come With Me Now," and it's hard to imagine SNL not cashing in on all that buzz. The power behind the band's smash single is undeniable and would definitely fire up the studio and televisions alike.
4. Ariana Grande
For the first few weeks of a new season Saturday Night Live always needs to pull in as many big names as possible, and few artists are having as great of a summer as Ariana Grande. Right now, the "Bang Bang" singer has three singles in the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and is gearing up for the release of her highly anticipated sophomore album My Everything. Grande won't just bring her amazing voice to SNL, she'd also bring along her dedicated Arianators fanbase, who will surely boost the show's ratings.
5. Weezer
It's been nearly 14 years since Weezer last took on Stage 8H, and with the alt-rock band gearing up to go "Back To The Shack," it's about time it heads back to Saturday Night Live, too. Weezer is often a band that gets more anticipation for new releases than is deserved, but the buzz surrounding the band's ninth studio album Everything Will Be Alright in the End genuinely feels deserved. With a Sept. 30 release date and a solid following, Weezer would be a great choice for musical guest No. 2 for SNL season 40.
6. Nicki Minaj
Of course, Nicki Minaj is one of the most-talked about rappers this summer. With the sexy new single "Anaconda" recently released and her third studio album The Pink Print right around the corner for the fourth quarter, Minaj is a natural fit to appear on Saturday Night Live this year. She last appeared onstage in 2011 as a performer, but this time around we'd like to see Minaj host too. She showed she has the acting chops for The Other Woman in the spring, and we imagine her rap voices and characters would translate well to sketch comedy.
7. Jhene Aiko
Jhene Aiko joined Drake on SNL last year as a featured artist for his "Hold On, We're Coming Home" performance, but it's high time the buzzing R&B artist commands the stage herself. Fall is the perfect time for Aiko to tackle the media circuit, with her debut album Souled Out finally due for release on Sept. 9. She's got some famous buddies too for cameos... we're thinking Childish Gambino should show up, too.
8. Alt-J
Continuing with SNL's pattern of supporting emerging artists, indie rockers Alt-J would be a natural fit for the program. The band got tons of buzz earlier this year with the release of its Miley Cyrus sampling single "Hunger of the Pine" and now its grooving its way to the top of the alternative world with the catchy track "Left Hand Free." It's hard to imagine SNL not capitalizing on one of the bigger alt-rock bands of the year, considering the program's history with such acts. Last year alone, SNL featured performances from Haim, Bastille, The National and St. Vincent.
9. Bleachers
To that end, it'd be great to see fun.'s Jack Antonoff pop up on SNL with his second band Bleachers. Earlier this year, Bleachers dropped the spectacular indie pop record Strange Desire, and he'd be a natural fit to promote that effort on SNL. The poppy sensibilities of singles such as "I Wanna Get Better" would appeal to fans of all genres, making for an easy and well received performance.
10. Taylor Swift
But of course, SNL can't have just emerging artists on its stage... and there are few musicians more famous than Taylor Swift. The "Red" singer proved her acting chops as the host and musical guest of an SNL episode in 2009, and it's high time she comes back. Swift is definitely dropping hints that's she's going to release new music before the end of the year, so a stint on Saturday Night Live would help to boast both her own buzz and buzz for the show. And she was shockingly funny last time, so we'd love to see her crack us up again!
11. Foo Fighters
Even though Foo Fighters are opting for HBO to pimp its upcoming eighth studio album, Dave Grohl loves him some SNL. Performing in the past with Nirvana, Queens of the Stone Age, Paul McCartney and more, Grohl has appeared on SNL 11 times. Why not make it an even dozen? The timing would definitely be right, and the relationship is there. This should and probably will happen, and we should all embrace it.
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