Saturday Night Live celebrated 40 years earlier this year and their skits aren’t the only reason for the show’s success. The musical performances on each show have played a huge part in the show’s long run. And these performances will go down in history as some of the best on SNL.
Nirvana
When Nirvana first appeared on Saturday Night Live, they played their hit song Teen Spirit. They returned in 1993 and put on an epic performance of their song Heart Shaped Box. Basketball star Charles Barkley hosted the show that evening and even he agreed that Nirvana’s SNL performance was one of their best.
Arcade Fire
Arcade Fire put on quite the show on Saturday Night Live in 2013. The stage was covered in musical instruments and glitter. The whole band wore white and performed their poppy song Afterlife. The crowd loved it and the entire stage was rocking out. The number of musicians on the stage that night was absolutely electrifying.
Kanye West
Kanye West always steals the show. Ben Affleck hosted the 38th season finale of Saturday Night Live in 2014 and praised the singer both times before he took the stage. West performed his song Black Skinhead and held nothing back. Visuals flashed behind the singer as he delivered an emotional and an awestruck performance.
Dr. Dre & Eminem
The list can’t be complete without Dr. Dre and Eminem’s 1999 appearance on Saturday Night Live. Dr. Dre took the stage with his protégé just a few weeks before his highly anticipated 2001 album was released. This was his first album in seven years and he couldn’t have promoted it in a better way. Eminem joined the SNL stage with Dr. Dre and delivered a killer performance of Dre’s hit song Forgot About Dre.