The only thing more challenging than performing on Saturday Night Live is also having to host the show — double duty, as they call it.
This has happened quite a few times over the course of the show’s 50-year career. Because why not get all the bang for your buck? Charismatic performers usually make for great hosts.
To be fair, the lines between host and performer are so often blurred on the show it can hard to tell where one duty ends and the other begins. Johnny Cash, for example, hosted SNL on April 17, 1982 with Elton John as the musical guest, but Cash wound up doing an awful lot of singing that night anyway. Or when Paul McCartney appeared on the show in May of 2026 as the musical guest, he also popped into one of the sketches, portraying a mechanic named Nigel.
But for the purposes of this list, we’re focusing solely on rock ‘n’ roll artists who have been called in to officially play the role of both host and musical guest, organized chronologically.
1. Paul Simon
Show Dates: Oct. 18, 1975, Nov. 20, 1976, May 10, 1986 and Dec. 19, 1987
It’s fitting really that Paul Simon, a native New Yorker, got to be the very first musical guest to also serve as host on Oct. 18, 1975, which was literally the show’s second episode ever. Simon did it again just over a year later on Nov. 20, 1976, bringing with him a friend named George Harrison to perform a few songs. Then in May of 1986 he co-hosted with Catherine Oxenberg of Dynasty fame while he and Ladysmith Black Mambazo provided the musical talent. Finally, he hosted one more time on Dec. 19, 1987, where Linda Ronstadt was the musical guest.
Watch Paul Simon on ‘SNL’ in 1976
2. Kris Kristofferson
Show Date: July 31, 1976
There really wasn’t anything Kris Kristofferson couldn’t do — act, sing, songwrite, you name it — which basically made him the perfect person to both host and perform on SNL‘s July 31, 1976 episode. Rita Coolidge, who was married to Kristofferson at the time, also performed.
Watch Kris Kristofferson on ‘SNL’ in 1976
3. Ray Charles
Show Date: Nov. 12, 1977
In 2024, Bill Murray was asked about who he thought was the best SNL host and his answer could not have been clearer.
“There’s only one that stands above all others. It was Ray Charles,” he said (via Variety). “Ray Charles knew all his lines cold. Ray Charles came on and played solo, he played with the Raelettes, he played with his septet and he played with the Saturday Night Live orchestra. And he may have played with his quintet as well. And he killed and murdered every single one of [his performances]. At the end of that show, they play [“Georgia on My Mind”], they play the song, and saxophones playing and you’re like ‘Hey man, I had a great week.’ You’re up there on the stage and you’re waving at people — I did not want to stand on that stage. I had no business being on that stage with Ray Charles.”
Watch Ray Charles on ‘SNL’ in 1977
4. Art Garfunkel
Show Date: March 11, 1978
Obviously if you have Paul Simon on your show, you must also balance the scales by having Art Garfunkel on it. He hosted an episode on March 11, 1978, on which he performed “All I Know,” “Scarborough Fair,” “Crying in My Sleep” and, with the help of co-musical guest Stephen Bishop, “Wonderful World.”
Watch Art Garfunkel on ‘SNL’
5. The Rolling Stones
Show Date: Oct. 7, 1978
Why invite just one Rolling Stone onto Saturday Night Live when you can invite all of them? That’s what happened in October of 1978 — the whole band came on to serve as both performers and hosts, marking the first time they’d done a TV performance in nearly 10 years.
“The appearance of the Stones on the show Saturday night was unquestionably, for the moment, the hottest ticket in New York,” reported The Washington Post back then. “Building entrances were jammed with teeny-boppers, some of them not so short in the tooth.”
Watch the Rolling Stones on ‘SNL’ in 1978
6. Frank Zappa
Show Date: Oct. 21, 1978
Most of these host/guest episodes turned out great, but that was not the case when Frank Zappa came on the show in 1978, two years after his first appearance. The musical portion was fine, but the rest went south – Zappa broke character on air and was generally found by the cast and crew to be difficult to work with. He never appeared on the show again after it.
“It’s a very difficult thing to do; they never make it easy on anyone who hosts the show,” he said the following year. “All the direction and attention goes to the sketches. They’re not called skits – they become incensed if you call them skits – and it’s all designed to accommodate the people who are regulars on the show, so anybody who goes on there to host is at a severe disadvantage.”
Watch Frank Zappa on ‘SNL’ in 1978
7. Ricky Nelson
Show Date: Feb. 17, 1979
On paper, Judy Collins was the musical guest for the Feb. 17, 1979 episode of SNL. But host Ricky Nelson performed four songs of his own: “Hello Mary Lou,” “Travelin’ Man,” “Fools Rush In” and “Dream Lover.”
Watch Ricky Nelson on ‘SNL’ in 1979
8. Debbie Harry
Show Date: Feb. 14, 1981
On Valentine’s Day 1981, Debbie Harry of Blondie hosted the show and also performed alongside the hip-hop group Funky Four Plus One. It had been Harry’s idea to invite them on the show, making them the first rap group to perform on SNL.
“At the time, we didn’t know the impact of what we did to become the first rap group, you know, to ever be on national television,” MC Sha-Rock, the only female member of Funky Four Plus One, said in NBC’s Ladies & Gentlemen… 50 Years of SNL Music documentary. “Debbie Harry fought for us. We were innocent-looking; there were similarities with her being with an all-male band.”
“They were so fresh and entertaining,” Harry added. “It seemed like a great idea.”
Watch Debbie Harry on ‘SNL’ in 1981
READ MORE: The 20 Most Controversial Saturday Night Live Moments of All Time
9. Olivia Newton-John
Show Date: May 22, 1982
In October of 1981, Olivia Newton-John released her famous Physical album. Then in May of 1982 she pulled double duty on SNL, bringing with her a number of songs from that release, including the title track.
Watch Olivia Newton-John on ‘SNL’ in 1982
10. Stevie Wonder
Show Date: May 7, 1983
On that same episode hosted by Newton-John, Eddie Murphy appeared as Stevie Wonder. Almost exactly one year later, the real Wonder came to both host and perform on the show, so naturally Murphy reprised his role, playing a producer who auditions a professional Stevie Wonder impersonator, played by Wonder himself.
Watch Stevie Wonder on ‘SNL’ in 1983
11. Willie Nelson
Show Date: Feb. 21, 1987
Skipping ahead a few years to 1987, SNL saw Willie Nelson as host and performer for an episode that also included special guest Danny DeVito. Nelson performed three originals, “Nightlife,” “Partners After All” and “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain,” plus a funnier bit with Victoria Jackson called “The Boyfriend Song.”
Watch Willie Nelson on ‘SNL’ in 1987
12. Dolly Parton
Show Date: April 15, 1989
Dolly Parton is another one of those people who more or less did it all – acting, singing, etc. — making her an excellent choice for SNL double duty.
“Oh, it really is great to be here in New York. I always have a good time here,” she said in her opening monologue. “But I have to be honest with you, though, I was a little nervous and a little worried about coming here. You know, it’s Saturday Night Live and all, and you hear all kinds of things, but…don’t you folks believe that for a minute! These folks have gone out of their way to make me feel like one of the family.”
Watch Dolly Parton on ‘SNL’ in 1989
13. Quincy Jones
Show Date: Feb. 10, 1990
When Quincy Jones made his double duty appearance, he brought with him a host of friends: Tevin Campbell, Andrae Crouch, Kool Moe Dee, Big Daddy Kane, Michael Brecker and more. At the top of the show, Jones led the house band through a rendition of Dizzy Gillespie’s “Manteca” and then dedicated his opening monologue to Nelson Mandela, who was scheduled to be released from prison shortly after the broadcast.
Watch Quincy Jones on ‘SNL’ in 1990
14. Sting
Show Date: Jan. 19, 1991, March 15, 1997
Sting has hosted/performed on the same episode twice in the history of Saturday Night Live — once on Jan. 19, 1991 and again on March 15, 1997 with the latter episode also featuring Veruca Salt. “I always enjoy coming on this show because I can do things I’m not usually allowed to do,” he said in his 1997 opening monologue.
Watch Sting on ‘SNL’ in 1997
15. Elton John
Show Date: April 2, 2011
The first time Elton John appeared on SNL was in April of 1982. Nearly 30 years after that, he finally returned, serving as host and musical guest on the April 2, 2011 episode. “You know, I appeared on this show once before as a musical guest in 1982,” he said in his opening monologue. “And of all the things I tried once early in the 1980s, this seemed like the safest one to try again. In any event, this is my second time here, so it is entirely appropriate for me to say: the b**** is back!”
Watch Elton John on ‘SNL’ in 2011
16. Mick Jagger
Show Date: May 19, 2012
In 2012, SNL did not invite the entirety of the Rolling Stones back, but they did involve Mick Jagger, who closed out season 37 of the show. During his musical performance segment, he was joined by Arcade Fire, Foo Fighters and Jeff Beck.
Watch Mick Jagger on ‘SNL’ in 2012
Rock’s Biggest ‘Saturday Night Live’ Performances
Gallery Credit: Corey Irwin
