The upcoming season of Saturday Night Live will begin on a high note. On Thursday night, it was revealed that Jay Z has been tapped as the season opener’s musical guest alongside host Ryan Gosling.
The news was revealed during this year’s final episode of Weekend Update Summer Edition and was later confirmed on the sketch show’s official Twitter page.
According to Variety, the 43rd season premiere will mark Jay Z’s fourth appearance on the SNL stage (not counting brief cameos). It will also air just months after the release of his critically acclaimed album 4:44.
Gosling hosted the show only once before in December of 2015, in support of his Oscar-nominated musical La La Land. For this upcoming episode, the 36-year-old actor will be promoting his latest film Blade Runner 2049, set to hit theaters Oct. 6.
Though no cast additions have been announced, we know Bobby Moynihan, Vanessa Bayer, and Sasheer Zamata will not return as cast members. They announced their departure at the end of season 42, the show’s highest-rated season in over 20 years. Most of its success has been attributed to its sketches that took aim at Donald Trump’s administration and family, most notably Melissa McCarthy’s impersonation of ex-White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer and Alec Baldwin’s impersonation of Trump. Both actors have earned 2017 Emmy nominations for their roles.
The first episode of Season 43 of SNL will air Sept. 30 on NBC.
