Celebrities

As ‘SNL’ host, Ariana Grande sings, jokes, impersonates Céline Dion, Jennifer Coolidge

Written by ABC Audio ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on October 13, 2024

If Ariana Grande ever decides to give up singing and acting, she could always play Vegas as an impressionist. She showed off her incredible gift for mimicry on the Oct. 12 edition of Saturday Night Live, which she was hosting for the first time since 2016.

Ari kicked off the show with a monologue in which she swore to keep it “low-key,” and then busted out a song that was all about how she wasn’t going to do any number of things, which she, of course, did. One of them was doing vocal impressions, followed by her impersonating Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus and Gwen Stefani in rapid succession. “Either way, this much is clear/ If you’re looking for a diva, don’t look over here,” she sang, while striking a diva pose.

She then went on to appear in nearly every sketch. Some highlights:

Ari hilariously impersonates Céline Dion’s recent promo for Sunday Night Football, except this time, she’s singing about how great (and violent) the UFC is: “It’s all coming back to me, but maybe not to them, because of the concussions, no?”

She and Chloe Fineman do dueling, spot-on Jennifer Coolidge impressions in a fake commercial for Maybelline — which causes Ari to briefly break and start laughing.

Ari plays a highly competitive mom who verbally abuses her son’s boyfriend, played by Bowen Yang, as a way of testing whether or not he’s “strong” enough to be with her “weak” son. She and Yang, her Wicked co-star, share a kiss at the end.

In a short called My Best Friend’s House, Ari plays a young girl who sings about how she loves how her bestie’s house smells — only to learn that her best friend’s dad is a serial killer.

In Renaissance Italy, Ariana plays a young boy whose parents castrated him to preserve his super-high singing voice — a real thing that was done back then. This gives Ari the chance to sing “Twist and Shout” at the very top end of her register.

Ari and the female SNL castmembers sing an “Espresso” parody as bridesmaids detailing what they got up to at the bride’s bachelorette weekend. Spoiler alert: The marriage is over.