32 Double Threats Who Have Hosted And Been The Musical Guest In The Same SNL Episode

One of the greatest honors a public figure can achieve is to either host Saturday Night Live or appear as a musical guest but how many people can say that they accomplished both in one night? Quite a few, actually. See for yourself by taking a look at some great SNL hosts who also put on memorable musical performances at Studio 8H in the same episode (or episodes).

Timothée Chalamet

After receiving a 2025 Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown, Timothée Chalamet paid tribute to the folk singer in an amusing way. The actor appeared on SNL's 50th season for his third time as host but his first time as a musical guest, performing covers of Dylan's “Outlaw Blues," “Three Angels,” and "Tomorrow Is a Long Time.”

Lady Gaga

In 2013, years before proving she was a phenomenal actor with a Golden Globe-winning performance on American Horror Story and an Oscar-nominated performance in A Star is Born, Lady Gaga pulled double duty at Studio 8H. In addition to her earnest performances of "Do What U Want" and "Gypsy," the pop star (née Stefani Germanotta) appeared in some of the best SNL sketches featuring a famous musician, which were made classic by her willingness to poke fun at herself.

Mick Jagger

After previously hosting and performing alongside his bandmates in The Rolling Stones in 1972, Mick Jagger would return to SNL to headline the 37th season finale on his own. For his performances of classic tracks like "The Last Time" and "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)," the legendary frontman was accompanied by Arcade Fire, Foo Fighters, and Jeff Beck.

Donald Glover

Donald Glover (a.k.a. Childish Gambino) opened his Season 43 SNL episode by singing about his ability to do "anything" in jest but was still able to back up that claim quite sufficiently with his hilarious acting and memorable musical performances. In fact, the episode famously marked the debut of the Atlanta star's hit single, "This is America."

Stevie Wonder

The most memorable highlight from Stevie Wonder's Season 8 SNL episode is when he appeared in a sketch alongside Eddie Murphy (who had portrayed the musician a few times before) as an aspiring Stevie Wonder impersonator seeking his help to perfect his impression. The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter also performed "Overjoyed" that night "Go Home."

Ariana Grande

For her second appearance on SNL in Season 41, Ariana Grande pulled double duty in more than one way. In addition to performing "Dangerous Woman" and "Be Alright" between sketches, one bit saw her demonstrate her impeccable ability for musical impersonations as a Tidal intern who must help when the music streaming platform loses power.

Elton John

Elton John first appeared on SNL as a musical guest on an episode hosted by fellow musician Johnny Cash in 1982 before returning 29 years later to both host and perform songs with Leon Russell from their album, The Union. In addition to the Grammy-winning headliner, it was a pretty star-studded night at Studio 8H, with cameos by Carmelo Anthony, Will Forte, Tom Hanks and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Miley Cyrus

Twice, Miley Cyrus got to be the best of both worlds on SNL. In Season 39, she poked fun at her VMAs performance with Robin Thicke and sang "Wrecking Ball" and "We Can't Stop" and, two years later, was joined by The Flaming Lips" to perform "Karen Don't Be Sad" after an introduction by special guest Hillary Clinton.

Justin Timberlake

Qualified to join SNL's Five-Timers Club both for his hosting and musical performances is Justin Timberlake, who debuted on the show with N*SYNC before pulling double duty for the first of multiple times on October 11, 2003. The pop star and actor has contributed to some of the show's most iconic musical sketches, including three awesome SNL Digital Shorts alongside Andy Samberg as a crass R&B duo.

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift has appeared at Studio 8H multiple times, acquiring a number of musical guest gigs and a few jaw-dropping SNL cameos under her belt, since becoming one of the most famous people in the world. In Season 35, she showed up for the second time as a musical guest (singing "You Belong With Me" and "Untouchable") and the first time as a host, appearing in a funny fake trailer for a Twilight rip-off called Firelight, among other sketches.

Paul Simon

No one has appeared on SNL as both the host and musical guest more times than Paul Simon, who also became the first to pull double duty on the show's second episode ever before coming back to do it three more times. The singer-songwriter was also the first person to join the Five-Timers Club by musical performances alone.

Chance The Rapper

In addition to being one of the most innovative hip-hop artists of his time, Chance the Rapper proved that he can act and has some impeccable comedic timing the multiple times he has hosted SNL. The second time, in Season 45, he also served as the musical guest and was joined by Megan Thee Stallion for a performance of "Handsome."

Kris Kristofferson

In July 1976, months before leading A Star is Born with Barbra Streisand, singer and actor Kris Kristofferson both sang and acted as an SNL headliner. He was joined by his then-wife Rita Coolidge for "Eddie the Eunuch" and later performed "I've Got a Life of My Own" on his own.

Debbie Harry

The frontwoman for Blondie performed solo on the Valentine's Day episode of SNL's sixth season, which she also hosted. Between sketches, Debbie Harry sang "Love TKO" and "Come Back Jonee" before introducing additional musical guest Funky 4 + 1's "That's The Joint," which became the first rap song performed on television that night.

Garth Brooks

Garth Brooks first served as both host and musical guest on SNL in the show's 23rd season, during which he appeared in sketch where he falls for Chris Kattan's Mango. The country music singer returned to pull double duty a year later but performed his musical numbers as his rock star alter ego, Chris Gaines.

Dolly Parton

For her sole SNL appearance, Dolly Parton hosted and sang in Season 14. The country music legend appeared in multiple comedic bits poking fun at her chest size and performed a couple of tracks from her 1989 album, White Limozeen.

Willie Nelson

February 21, 1987, marked Willie Nelson's second SNL appearance as a musical guest and sole hosting appearance. The influential "outlaw country" legend, who had done some acting before and has acted plenty of times since, was a great fit for the gig and even performed a song with then-cast member Victoria Jackson.

Drake

Before he became one of the most successful rap artists of his time, Drake (née Aubrey Graham) was an actor, best known for his starring role on the Canadian coming-of-age drama, Degrassi: The Next Generation. He reminded audiences that his acting talents have not waned when, after performing as a musical guest in 2011, he returned to SNL to serve double duty in 2014 and again two years later.

Billie Eilish

Billie Eilish became the first person born in the 21st Century to host SNL when she appeared in the Season 47 Christmas episode, which was met with much acclaim despite her not being able to stop laughing in a few sketches. The Grammy and Oscar winner's parents introduced her and her brother Finneas' performance of "Happier Than Ever" before they later returned to perform "Male Fantasy."

Halsey

Before lending her voice to Sing 2 and appearing in the A24 horror movie MaXXXine, Halsey was considered a non-actor who nailed her SNL hosting gig from Season 44. The self-professed fan of the show was a hilarious standout in sketches and also wowed audiences with her musical performances, such as when she painted a full portrait while singing "Eastside."

Ray Charles

Before making a cameo in, arguably, the best movie based on an SNL character, 1980's The Blues Brothers, Ray Charles headlined the fifth episode of the show's third season. The influential musical genius was surprisingly good and sketches and unsurprisingly shined with his performances of "I Can See Clearly Now," "What I'd Say," "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning," and "I Can't Stop Loving You."

Olivia Newton-John

Having gained international fame from playing Sandy in Grease, there was no question that Olivia Newton-John would be a great fit on SNL as both a host and musical guest. The Australian singer and actor actually appeared in a parody of the 1978 musical movie classic when she took the stage for the Season 7 finale, during which she also performed songs from her hit album, Physical.

Frank Zappa

Frank Zappa's hosting duties in SNL's third season were largely seen as a disaster, due to his tendency to go off-script, which is said to be why he never appeared on the show again. However, his performances of "Dancin' Fool," "The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing," and "Rollo" with the Mothers of Invention should still be recognized as highlights of that night.

Quincy Jones

In SNL's 15th season, influential music producer Quincy Jones made his sole appearance on the show as a host and musical guest. However, notably, he was not the only musical guest to appear that night, seen performing "Back On The Block," "The Verb To Be," and "Wee B. Dooinit" with the likes of Take 6, Tevin Campbell, Andrae Crouch, Sandra Crouch, Kool Moe Dee, Big Daddy Kane, Melle Mel, Quincy D III, Siedah Garrett, and Al Jarreau.

Sting

Sting is qualified for the Five-Timers Club with his number of SNL appearances as the musical guest – one of which, in Season 16, also saw him headline as the host. The one-time Police frontman would later return to host the show again in 1997 but with musical guest Veruca Salt.

Harry Styles

In November 2019, Harry Styles made his debut as an SNL host on a night that also saw his induction into the Five-Timers Club as a musical guest. The English singer and actor had previously appeared three times with the boy band One Direction and once as a solo artist in 2017.

Gary Busey

Following his Oscar-nominated performance as the late, eponymous rock 'n roll pioneer in 1978's The Buddy Holly Story, Gary Busey made his sole appearance on SNL as a host. The actor also performed the song "Stay All Night" as one of three musical guests for that episode, the other two being Gregory Hines and Eubie Blake.

Bruno Mars

As he mentioned in his opening monologue, Bruno Mars had no prior acting experience (unless you count his cinematic debut as "Little Elvis" in Honeymoon in Vegas) before appearing as a host in Season 38 of SNL. Nevertheless, he proved to be a fantastic comedic actor in an episode that was also graced with a cameo by Tom Hanks, who showed up to introduce the pop star's performance of "Locked Out of Heaven."

Desi Arnaz

Desi Arnaz used to perform music and comedy on an almost regular basis when starring in the classic TV sitcom, I Love Lucy, as Ricky Ricardo. Therefore, appearing on SNL as both the host and musical guest (alongside his son, Desi Arnaz Jr.) should have been a breeze for the Cuban-born performer.

Lizzo

Lizzo's second appearance on SNL as a musical guest (for which she performed "About Damn Time" and "Special") was also her first time hosting the series. In her Season 47 episode, she proved to be a natural – especially in one sketch as a flutist who cannot play a note with twerking in unison – but also got a few cases of the giggles, endearingly so.

Art Garfunkel

Following his appearances with his one-time singing partner, Paul Simon, Art Garfunkel went solo on March 11, 1978, as the host and musical guest. In addition to his performances of "All I Know," "Scarborough Fair," and "Crying in My Sleep," he was joined by Stephen Bishop for "Wonderful World."

Lily Tomlin

For her first hosting gig, on the sixth episode of SNL's first season, comedy icon Lily Tomlin also filled in as the musical guest, performing "St. James Infirmary" with Howard Shore & the All Nurse Band. In what would now be considered a controversial SNL moment if it was not largely forgotten, Tomlin would return to pull double duty in Season 8 but, for her musical performances, donned blackface to play a male R&B singer character named Pervis Hawkins.