Being a Saturday Night Live musical guest makes you popular. Performing on the show a second time makes you beloved. Performing on the great sketch comedy TV show three times or more just might make you a legend. That’s how we would describe the following 32 pop stars, rock bands, and masters of the rhyme who have brought the house down at Studio 8H as memorable SNL musical guests on multiple occasions.
Billy Joel
The "Piano Man" himself first performed at Studio 8H in Season 3 on an episode hosted by Chevy Chase, which was also the first time the short-lived SNL cast member came back to host. After a return in 1981, Billy Joel's third time on the show was eight years later in 1989, which saw him perform "We Didn't Start the Fire."
Foo Fighters
Following two appearances with Nirvana and a third as an impromptu drummer for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Dave Grohl made his SNL debut as frontman of Foo Fighters in December 1995, a year after the release of their debut album. The rock band (which has gone through a vast rotation of members since) also performed with Mick Jagger as special guests in 2012 and some of the best SNL sketches featuring musicians have involved Grohl.
Miley Cyrus
Having become famous as a TV star (while leading Disney Channel's Hannah Montana) before her music career really took off, it makes sense that Miley Cyrus made her SNL debut as a host in 2011 before returning as both host and musical guest two years later. Some of the Grammy winner's most notable performances on the show include the SNL 40th Anniversary Special and a pre-taped rendition of "Wish You Were Here" that aired during the Covid-era "SNL At Home" days.
Justin Timberlake
A celebrity who qualifies for SNL's Five-Timers Club as both a host and musical guest is Justin Timberlake, who might be one of the best SNL hosts we have ever seen for that matter. His first time performing music on the show, however, was in 2000 with NSYNC but some of his especially memorable musical moments on the show have been his raunchy collaborations with Andy Samberg.
Coldplay
A year after releasing their hit debut album, Parachutes, in 2000, British rock band Coldplay was booked on SNL for the first of several gigs. Lead singer Chris Martin is known for appearing in a few sketches – including one of the most popular SNL clips on YouTube, in which he helps Andrew Garfield finish The Amazing Spider-Man 2's kissing scene – and performed solo for the first Covid-era "At Home" episode.
Beyoncé
If you include her two appearances as part of Destiny's Child and her special guest appearance alongside her husband, Jay-Z, Beyoncé has performed on SNL five times between 2001 and 2008. She also appeared in a sketch offering a humorous dramatization of the making of the "Single Ladies" video and has been impersonated countless times by SNL and Groundlings alum Maya Rudolph.
Randy Newman
The second-ever episode of SNL marked the show's first appearance by Randy Newman, who would perform five more times up until 1988. The singer-songwriter would expand his audience when he wrong captivating, award-nominated songs for several beloved Pixar movies, including Toy Story's "You Got a Friend in Me."
Eminem
Most of Eminem's many SNL performances have been collaborative efforts. For instance, the rapper made his 1999 debut on the show with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, performed "Stan" with Dido the following year, and would bring Skylar Grey along for two separate occasions – for "Survival" in 2013 and a medley of "Walk on Water," "Stan," and "Love the Way You Lie" in 2017.
Taylor Swift
Any of the several times that Taylor Swift has appeared at Studio 8H has been a notable occasion. This not only includes her many appearances as a musical guest (the second of which doubled as a hosting gig) but also her jaw-dropping SNL cameos, such as her impromptu introduction of Ice Spice in the Season 49 premiere.
Paul Simon
No one has appeared on SNL as a musical guest more times than Paul Simon, who was also one of several performers when he hosted the show's second ever episode. Many of his 15 gigs (as of 2018) were shared with musicians like George Harrison, his wife Edie Brickell, and Alicia Keys.
Rihanna
Surprisingly, it was not until 2009 when Rihanna made her SNL debut, featuring guest Young Jeezy for her performance of "Hard." She would go on to show up at Studio 8H several more time, two of which saw her appear in SNL Digital Shorts with Andy Samberg as "Shy Ronnie."
Sting
The Police had already broken up by the time Sting made his SNL debut in 1987. Before the end of the 20th Century, he would appear five more times, including one gigs doubling as host and musical guest and another as just the host, featuring performances by Veruca Salt.
Arcade Fire
Arcade Fire had the pleasure of performing alongside Mick Jagger as special guests when the Rolling Stones frontman hosted in 2012, which we will also count as their third SNL gig. The indie rock outfit has also appeared in a few sketches, such as an SNL Digital Shorts and a game show-style bit challenging host Tina Fey to guess who is a new cast member or a member of the band.
Jack White
On the same night Woody Harrelson was inducted into the Five-Timers Club, Jack White was also given a robe for preforming on SNL for the fifth time in February 2023. This would include when he made his debut in 2002, billed alongside former bandmate Meg White as The White Stripes.
Leon Redbone
Before his death in 2019, Leon Redbone appeared as a musical guest on SNL four times, first in 1976 and lastly in 1983. While the blues musician would go on to do some acting, such as voicing Leon the Snowman in the 2003 Christmas movie classic, Elf, he never appeared in any sketches during any of his visits to Studio 8H.
Linda Ronstadt
After making her Studio 8H debut in a cold open cameo in 1977, Linda Ronstadt would first perform on SNL two years later with co-musical guest Phoebe Snow. She shared her next three gigs with the cast of The Pirates of Penzance in 1980, The Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán in 1987, and Aaron Neville in 1989.
Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
Rock and roll icons Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers performed on SNL eight times. The last time was in 2010 – for which Petty appeared in an SNL Digital Short opposite Andy Samberg and host Alec Baldwin – before the frontman's death in 2017.
Bonnie Raitt
As of 1994, Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer Bonnie Raitt has been an SNL musical guest four times. Her debut was in 1978 but the three subsequent appearance would all occur in the early 1990s.
Aerosmith
Despite breaking out a few years before SNL premiered, Aerosmith would not appear on the show until 1990, when they also starred in a legendary "Wayne's World" segment with Tom Hanks as Barry, their roadie. The rock quartet would perform on the show three more times, the last occurring in 2001.
Neil Young
A surprising late bloomer to SNL is Neil Young, who made his debut in 1989 after being impersonated by Dana Carvey a couple of years earlier. The folk singer and part-time Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young member returned for his third time more than a decade later in 2000.
Mariah Carey
One of the most esteemed pop divas of her generation, Mariah Carey, first appeared on SNL as a musical guest in 1990. Her fourth time, in 2008, saw her joined by T-Pain for a performance of "Migrate."
Beck
After his 1993 hit single "Loser" made him a star, Beck debuted on SNL in 1997. This was the first of several appearance for the alt rock hero, the second of which saw him act in a sketch framed as a Behind the Music episode about Fat Albert & the Junkyard Gang.
Maroon 5
Pop rock band Maroon 5 made their first of several appearances in 2004, shortly after making their mainstream breakthrough. Frontman Adam Levine (also known as a judge on NBC's The Voice) has also appeared on the show solo to host in 2013 and join Kanye West in a performance of "Heard 'Em Say" in 2005.
Prince
Unless you count his performance of "Electric Chair" at SNL's 15th Anniversary Special in 1989, Prince was only a musical guest on the show three times. However, after his untimely death in 2016, the show aired a special featuring clips of all his Studio 8H sets, highlights of the recurring "Prince Show" sketches featuring Fred Armisen as the pop star, and anecdotes shared by host Jimmy Fallon.
Natalie Merchant
Natalie Merchant's first two appearances on SNL were as the lead singer of the indie rock group 10,000 Maniacs in the late '80s and early '90s. Her two subsequent gigs as a musical guest occurred in 1995 and 1998 after she had gone solo.
Justin Bieber
Following his breakthrough as a teen pop sensation, Justin Bieber made his SNL debut at 16 years old in a 2010 episode which also saw him participate in a sketch with host Tina Fey. The Canadian artist went on to double as host and musical guest for his second gig in 2013 and also made a few unexpected cameos, such as in a Church Lady revival from 2011 and in 2012 for the 100th SNL Digital Short.
Lizzo
Lizzo made her Studio 8H debut in a big way, performing as the musical guest on an episode hosted by the legendary Eddie Murphy making an epic SNL return in 2019. A couple years later, she returned as both musical guest and host and, while she could not stop laughing during some sketches, she was pretty stone-faced for a bit that demonstrated her talent for simultaneously twerking and playing the flute.
Green Day
Green Day emerged as one of the biggest bands of the '90s but would only perform on the SNL once during that decade. The punk trio would, however, return twice more during the 2000s, first following the success of their Grammy-winning album, American Idiot, in 2005 and again in 2009 to promote 21st Century Breakdown.
Billie Eilish
A non-actor who killed it at as an SNL host for the first time in 2021 is Billie Eilish, who also served as a musical guest for her second time that night. The Grammy and Oscar-winning pop sensation has gone on to participate in sketches in her subsequent appearances as well, such as when she joined Barbie cast member Kate McKinnon for a music video for the Season 49 Christmas show.
James Taylor
James Taylor had the rare opportunity to perform three songs in multiple episodes: when he made his SNL debut in 1976 and both times he appeared in the '90s. He would also play a song during host Michael Palin's monologue in 1979 and once served as a co-host and co-musical guest with Paul Simon in 1980.
Jay-Z
Jay-Z qualifies for this list by his solo appearances as an SNL musical guest alone. However, he has taken the stage at Studio 8H for a few special appearances, such as when he joined wife, Beyoncé, for "Crazy in Love" in 2003 and when he performed his rap on Justin Timberlake's "Suit & Tie" in 2013.
Kanye West
Kanye West's debut SNL performance in October 2005 was preceded by a cameo by Mike Myers, reference their awkward appearance together at a telethon benefitting victims of Hurricane Katrina. He would later be joined by Pusha T to perform "Runaway" for his fourth gig and memorably performed "I Love It" with Lil Pump dressed as water bottles for his seventh appearance in a 2018 episode that would end in controversy when the rapper went on an unexpected political tirade.
