Howard Stern gave his best imitation of Trevor Noah hosting the 66th Annual Grammy Awards, joking on-air that the South African comedian played it safe, out of necessity.
"I was watching the Grammys and Trevor Noah was the host and he did the opposite of a roast. He was like a cheerleader," Stern said on his SiriusXM show earlier this week. "He didn't say one negative thing about anybody."
The Howard Stern Show co-host Robin Quivers suggested that Noah wanted to avoid a situation like Jo Koy's controversial hosting of the Golden Globes last month. The comedian was widely criticized for his opening monologue, where he later confessed to being unprepared.
As Stern pointed out, Noah took a decidedly different approach.
At one point, he praised 21 Savage for reaching one billion Spotify streams, which Stern parodied.
"Look at that, '21 Savage is so great, do you know how great 21 Savage is? He always pays his taxes on time, he's got a great physique, got a great ass, he's 21 Savage. He's fantastic,'" Stern joked.
"'No one is safe, no one is off-limits from my admiration. And you will hear it tonight," he added.
After playing a clip of Noah announcing Doja Cat's attendance at the Grammys, Stern mimicked Noah again: "Doja Cat or should I say our new Jesus?'" Stern quipped
After praising Doja's latest album, Scarlet, Noah called her single "Paint the Town Red" a "banger." "[It's] about how she doesn't care what anybody thinks about her," Noah added. "Oh really, Doja? Oh really? Well guess what? We think you're pretty great."
"Take that!" Stern jokingly responded to the clip. "And you know what else, Robin?" Doja cat flosses every single day. That's why she has such great breath."
However, Stern acknowledged that Noah was "in a hard position" as a comedian taking on awards show hosting duties. "I feel so bad for the [guy.] He's gotta sit there and be like–They should give him a baton."
"Trevor Noah's a comedian who takes things apart. I think Trevor Noah did what he had to do: he had to sit there and tell everyone how great they are. You have to," Stern continued. "What are you gonna do? Go up there–Look at that guy Jo Koy [he] went up there, he tried to make a few jokes, they almost fucking killed the guy."
