Sturgill Simpson to Play Saturday Night Live
Add yet another accolade to the list of Sturgill Simpson’s growing accomplishments. Announced late Saturday night (12-17) during the latest episode of Saturday Night Live, the surprise contender for Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards in February will be the musical guest on the venerable TV staple January 14. The show will be hosted by “Rogue One” actress Felicity Jones. January 14th will be the first new SNL episode in 2017 after the cast goes on a hiatus through the holidays.
The honor for Sturgill shows the just how important the Grammy nomination for A Sailor’s Guide to Earth was to his career. Though the album was doing just fine on its own, the Album of the Year has everyone asking, “Who is Sturgill Simpson?” Well on January 14th, they’ll be able to find out on one of the biggest stages on television. The performance may also be important for Sturgill to get onto the radar of Grammy voters right as they will be filling out their picks. Sturgill is already considered a strong dark horse who could possibly emerge with a plurality of votes in a field that includes the massive heavyweights of Adele and Beyoncé—similar to how Beck won in 2015. A Sailor’s Guide to Earth is also up for Best Country Album at the Grammys.
Sturgill has already done the rounds on many of the evening talk shows, but the Saturday Night Live stage holds a special distinction for artists. Sturgill joins Chris Stapleton and Margo Price as upsurging country performers who’ve played the stage recently.
Simpson is not currently on tour, and was planning to take 2017 off since he’s expecting the birth of his second child. But after the Grammy nominations, he’s said he’s considering to get back to performing and strike while the iron’s hot. Saturday Night Live is a good place to start.
Harpo
December 18, 2016 @ 4:24 am
This is great news
LG
December 18, 2016 @ 4:50 am
While I think a Stapleton-size takeoff for Sturgill is unlikely, I hope he gets some serious mileage out of his increased profile for the sake of that growing family of his. Well deserved!
Big Cat
December 18, 2016 @ 5:58 pm
If Sturgill was trying for a similar takeoff he’d write about getting his fishing poles thrown out of the house or blacking out at 26
Boatwrong
December 19, 2016 @ 12:23 pm
Charlie Daniels wrote “Was it 25 or 26”.
Big Cat
December 19, 2016 @ 1:27 pm
I thought Don Simpson wrote it for Simple Man
It was playing either way
Boatwrong
December 19, 2016 @ 2:14 pm
You are kinda right. Don Sampson wrote it. I was wrong either way.
Boatwrong
December 19, 2016 @ 2:16 pm
The point I was trying to make was Stapleton didn’t write that song
RobertS
December 18, 2016 @ 8:10 am
This is indeed outstanding timing for him, and as with the others, this underscores the fact that the country genre includes many top artists who aren’t usually included in mainstream radio formats.
Heath
December 18, 2016 @ 9:25 am
Sturgill earned his spot on the show. It always seems weird to me when people like Margo Price or even Maren Morris get to play based on their connections. Truly happy that Simpson got his spot by putting out quality records & GRAMMY nom for best album!
Jack Williams
December 18, 2016 @ 11:01 am
He’s getting the spot because he was nominated for Album of the Year, which wouldn’t have happened if he wasn’t on a major label. Also, he probably would have been nominated in the Americana category again and not the Country category if he wasn’t on a major label. It’s a little ironic that the more rootsy and less country album (ASGTE) gets nominated in the Country category and the more country album (MMSICM) got nominated in the Americana category. Still glad that it happened , though.
Gena R.
December 18, 2016 @ 11:03 am
I literally squealed when I saw the announcement — I was like, “it’s about time!” I mean, I think it would’ve been cooler if they had booked him during the ‘Metamodern Sounds…’ period; but I suppose now with the major Grammy nominations, this would be as good a time as any for such a high-profile gig. 🙂
hoptowntiger94
December 18, 2016 @ 12:47 pm
I was on this site this morning that lists SNL musical guest, year, and song(s) performed and I was surprised how many times the show was chasing a trend or waiting for an artist to be more established before getting booked.
For example, the Black Keys first appearance wasn’t until 2011.
hoptowntiger94
December 18, 2016 @ 3:22 pm
Here’s another good example: Kings of Leon 2008 (no pre-Sex on Fire appearances). That was my jumping off point.
Andrew
December 18, 2016 @ 9:40 am
Can’t imagine why he’d want to play on that trash show with those liberal douchebags
Ll28
December 18, 2016 @ 10:41 am
Maybe because the Glen Beck Variety Hour is all booked up for 2017? It’s solely made up of Ted Nugent, Kid Rock and Hank Jr rotating the performance slot, since most singers, actors, and artists tend to be, as you so eloquently say,, “liberal douchebags.”
Whatever. I’m really happy for him.
Ll28
December 18, 2016 @ 10:46 am
Oops. Glenn Beck^^^
jtrpdx
December 21, 2016 @ 2:28 pm
I think you would be surprised how liberal Sturgill is. Read some of his interviews and lyrics.
Trigger
December 18, 2016 @ 10:47 am
I don’t know, maybe because he’s a musician and he’d have to be a fool to turn down such a huge opportunity to get his music to more people, especially when he’s in the running for a major award at the Grammys. My guess is when Sturgill got extended the opportunity, politics was the very last thing on his mind.
Can anything transpire in American culture anymore without someone attempting to ruin it due to political vitriol?
Christian H.
December 18, 2016 @ 9:56 pm
Sure hope we can continue to keep the politics off this site. Trigger does a pretty good job of avoiding it. I don’t come here to read anyone’s opinion on politics. There are endless options on the internet if one would like to express those views.
Whiskey_Pete
December 19, 2016 @ 10:49 am
I agree they’re liberal douche bags but hey publicity is publicity and a net gain for all of us.
Greg
December 18, 2016 @ 10:22 am
Sturgill is a Liberal, he will fit right in.
Trigger
December 18, 2016 @ 10:56 am
He’s not participating in a political think tank, he’s going there to play music. I guess he should turn down one of the biggest opportunities in his career because some people have a beef with Alec Baldwin. How about we be happy for a guy who paid his dues and is finally getting recognized? I think Saturday Night Live has sucked for years, but I’ll be tuning in on Jan 14th, at least for the musical performances.
Boatwrong
December 19, 2016 @ 12:25 pm
SNL was pretty good with Dave Chappell hosting a few weeks ago.
marc
December 18, 2016 @ 11:43 am
Donald Trump didn’t have an issue with hosting SNL.
Matt
December 18, 2016 @ 4:37 pm
Who fucking cares
Whiskey_Pete
December 19, 2016 @ 10:54 am
Sturgill Simpson is a libertarian. Someone fact check-me.
Johnny Reb
December 19, 2016 @ 9:27 pm
Yeah, a big coal-mining loving liberal.
AT
December 18, 2016 @ 10:29 am
Such a short list of country acts who’ve appeared over the years. Glad to see Sturgil make the list.
76 – Anne Murray
76 – Kris Kristofferson
77 – Willia Nelson
80 – Anne Murray
82 – Johnny Cash
82 – Charlie Daniels Band
86 – Roseanne Cash
87 – Willie Nelson
88 – Randy Travis
89 – Dolly Parton
89 – kd Lang
92 – Garth Brooks
94 – Dwight Yoakam
99 – Garth Brooks
02 – Faith Hill
03 – Dixie Chicks
07 – Keith Urban
07 – Carrie Underwood
08 – Tim McGraw
09 – Taylor Swift
11 – Lady Antebellum
15 – Blake Shelton
16 – Chris Stapleton
16 – Margo Price
at
December 18, 2016 @ 10:36 am
And Maren Morris this year. Forgot her.
stinks
December 18, 2016 @ 3:22 pm
She’s completely forgettable.
hoptowntiger94
December 18, 2016 @ 10:51 am
There was one “country” artist on the show in 6 years (09-15). Sturgill will be 5th in two years. Someone on the staff at SNL must be an avid reader of SCM!
hoptowntiger94
December 18, 2016 @ 3:28 pm
What’s intersting is SNL ignored the bro-country movement (Shelton was on the show because of his TV show), but is all over whatever we are calling this movement in country music with Sturgill, Margo, and Chris.
seak05
December 18, 2016 @ 6:30 pm
SNL producers want acts that are going to appeal to a large cross-section, or the npr crowd. Chris, Margo, Sturgil are all very popular with that crowd. Carrie was on the show earlier in her career. Blake also has a more diverse fan base, because of the show, and he also hosted (and BRH aside, most of his stuff is mid-tempo ballads — that’s why it all sounds the same). Most country acts the fanbase doesn’t overlap with who watches SNL.
Also NBC in general has been booking a ton of country acts lately, so I’d expect the snl trend to continue.
LG
December 18, 2016 @ 11:17 am
Zac Brown was on in 2015 as well,
Doug
December 19, 2016 @ 7:59 pm
Wow. I’m surprised so many country acts have appeared on SNL. One act that’s not on this list appeared sometime in the first few seasons (I know this because I co-wrote the first history of the show, and our book mentions how shocked NBC executives were when they heard the name of the band, which of course they’d never heard of — SNL’s choices of musical guests in the early days didn’t have anything to do with who was big in the charts): Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys.
DJ
December 18, 2016 @ 11:56 am
“Can anything transpire in American culture anymore without someone attempting to ruin it due to political vitriol? ”
……………
No. The pros at political vitriol, politicians and their worshipers, on both sides of the aisle (that doesn’t exist inside the beltway except during campaign seasons) have ensured the vitriol is part of our lives.
I won’t tune in and it has nothing to do with my politics. I don’t like the show. It hasn’t been funny since Eddie Murphy was Buck Wheat.
BigJaker
December 18, 2016 @ 2:42 pm
Fingers crossed he wears the “Who the F*ck is Sturgill Simpson” tshirt on the show
jtrpdx
December 21, 2016 @ 2:32 pm
Not going to happen. The hipster merchandising folks at his label are only producing them in “unisex slim fit”. And they aren’t shipping until Feb, according to the website. Although, I guess he could have one custom made in a regular size, which any fan who wants a regular fitting shirt and doesn’t want to wait 2 months is going to have to do!
Charlie
December 21, 2016 @ 5:44 am
Since this news amounts to what is essentially a Christmas present to us all, let me wish the readers, commenters, and all the staff of Saving Country Music a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Orgirl1
January 3, 2017 @ 9:37 pm
This is great news. I bet that the people with the ACM’s and the CMA’s are just about feeling like total dumbasses now.