In November, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were named musical guest for Saturday Night Live on Saturday (Dec. 17). The band has since revealed on social media that their guitar player Nick Zinner is still recovering from a month-long case of pneumonia. So, the group is bowing out of their SNL gig and in their place, Lizzo will take the stage.
Wrote Lizzo on Twitter, “SURPRISE” with a Christmas tree emoji. “It’s an honor to fill in for the yeah yeah yeahs who unfortunately could not perform next week.”
Videos by American Songwriter
The host for this week’s Saturday Night Live will be actor Austin Butler, known recently for his portrayal of Elvis Presley in The King’s biopic, Elvis.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs announced their SNL cancelation on social media. “As many of our fans know Nick has had pneumonia over the past month and it’s been an up and down recovery process,” they shared. “The band’s top priority is supporting Nick through a full recovery, as a result we had to pull out from our engagements of KROG’s Acoustic Christmas and Saturday Night Live.
The band added that they have “enjoyed the incredible heights of being chosen to close out SNL’s 2022,” and they are “deeply thankful and expectedly heartbroken we cannot rise to these occasions.”
The statement continued, “It’s been a tough week, and it’s been a tough year on the health front for us alongside so many artists who are committed to connecting with audiences amidst a pandemic. We send our love to our fans and supporters, thank you for your understanding and well wishes, it means the world to us. Wishing you a healthy and happy rest of 2022, we’re looking forward to a strong return in 2023.”
The upcoming performance would have been the band’s first on Saturday Night Live since 2009. Now the gig belongs to Lizzo, who is making her second appearance this year after pulling both hosting and musical performance duties in April.
Photo: Lizzo Special Album Cover