‘SNL’: Ariana Grande Previews ‘Wicked’ Riff After Singing Medley of Hits by Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lopez and More With Bowen Yang

Ariana Grande wasn’t just the musical guest during the March 9 episode of “Saturday Night Live.” While she took the stage to perform two songs from “Eternal Sunshine,” her just-released sixth album, “We Can’t Be Friends” and “Imperfect For You” — and was introduced by her mom, Joan Grande, for the second number — she also took on two different sketches.

After appearing as a patient in a group therapy session during the first half of the show, she was invited back to the stage later on in the night for a “Moulin Rouge” spoof, giving her the opportunity to sing covers of multiple hit songs.

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The sketch created a PBS special, hosted by Mikey Day, taking a look at what the “Elephant Love Medley” would have looked like had director Baz Luhrmann known they’d be able to get the rights to other love songs; Bowen Yang and Grande played Christian and Satine, the lead characters portrayed in the movie by Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman.

Together, the duo — through a few giggles — covered TLC’s “Creep,” Jennifer Lopez’s “Waiting for Tonight,” Taylor Swift’s “You Belove With Me,” “The Sound of Music’s” “Do-Re-Mi,” Oasis’ “Wonderwall,” Carrie Underwood’s “Jesus Take the Wheel,” Styx’s “Come Sail Away,” Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” and Dusty Springfield’s “Son-Of-A Preacher Man.”

They also mixed in “Happy Birthday” multiple times and a few lines from the original track, while host Josh Brolin briefly joined to speak a few lines from “Lady Marmalade,” one of the movie’s soundtrack songs sung by Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya and Pink.

At the very end, Grande and Yang sang the famous riff that comes at the end of “Defying Gravity,” from “Wicked.” Grande stars as Glinda in the upcoming movie, alongside Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba. The first part is set to hit theaters on Nov. 27 with “Part Two” slated for Nov. 26, 2025.

During the show, Grande also released a surprise “slightly deluxe” edition of “Eternal Sunshine” featuring alternate versions of four songs: the Mariah Carey remix of the lead single “Yes, And?”; an acoustic version of “Imperfect for You” that she sings accompanied only by a pianist; an a capella take of “True Story”; and a Troye Sivan-featuring version of “Supernatural.” However, it is currently only available through her store and not on streaming services.

Grande’s two performances on the show were sung in a lower register than she sings on the album, and “Imperfect for You” featured a more acoustic, almost country arrangement; there are now three different official versions of the song in circulation, two days after its initial release.

(Additional reporting by Jem Aswad)

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