The Weeknd Joins Ariana Grande To Perform "Love Me Harder" On Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live jumped off its 40th season last night in blaze of boundary pushing glory, inviting Ariana Grande and subversive anti-pop star The Weeknd to perform their collaborative single "Love Me Harder." The big four-oh of NBC's flagship sketch comedy program did not merely play host to its first black Weekend Update correspondent in Michael Che's debut, it also found hip-hop taking a more prominent stance in the late-night show's programming with sketches that sourced Nicki Minaj's "Anaconda" as an apt pick-up line aggregator and revealed Chris Pratt to be quite the dynamic host.
Grande commenced her pop-centric late-night romp solo with Weeknd's three-piece in tow, but was joined by the band's leader mid-way through the performance to juggle hit-calling duties with his patently trill croon. All in all, SNL's comeback went off without a hitch and found the show breaching it's own limits in pro form, even introducing it's youngest featured player since Anthony Michael Hall in the Samberg -Seinfeld- Chappelle hybrid that is Pete Davidson. You can watch the entirety of the show's 40th season starter on Hulu, but tune-in down below to catch Grande and The Weeknd's duet of "Love Me Harder."