NEWS
Eddie Vedder
Photo by Danny ClinchPearl Jam‘s Eddie Vedder, who’s back on the road after positive COVID-19 cases postponed dates on his solo tour earlier in February, says his own bout with the coronavirus was “pretty serious.”
As Ultimate Classic Rock first reported on Sunday (Feb. 27), Vedder shared his experience in front of a live audience in Los Angeles Friday night. The moment was captured on video by a fan at the show.
“I just wanted to take a quick second to look at this, because it’s very rare,” Vedder said, looking out at the crowd after his daughter Olivia performed her own song “My Father’s Daughter” onstage at L.A.’s YouTube Theater. “It’s incredible. I got the COVID right before we were supposed to start practicing, probably five, six weeks ago, and literally saw my life flash in front of my eyes.”
Vedder continued, “I wasn’t quite sure… because I’ve done some very good things for my body, and I’ve also had a lot of fun. I’ve done some things that could be … some kind of abuse, I mean, nothing really clinical,” he joked. “I won’t get into the details. Just use your imagination!”
“But it was, it felt pretty serious,” said Vedder of his illness. “And to get through that and then be back in a room like this, facing this many people facing this way, listening to us play music for you is really, truly, it’s been a gift and an honor. Thanks for listening. We’re so grateful.”
Vedder and his band the Earthlings — Chad Smith, Josh Klinghoffer, Chris Chaney, Glen Hansard and Andrew Watt — launched the tour support of Vedder’s new album, Earthling.
Listen to Vedder talk about returning to the stage after having COVID-19 in the concert clip below, and watch Olivia perform “My Father’s Daughter,” a ballad co-written by her dad and Hansard.
NEWS
Live from London, it is Saturday Night Live.
The legendary sketch comedy institution officially launched its UK edition on March 21 with Saturday Night Live UK, featuring former SNL cast member Tina Fey as host and British indie rock group Wet Leg as the episode’s musical guest.
This global expansion of Lorne Michaels’ famous NBC program began with Fey’s opening monologue, which included unexpected cameos from Michael Cera and UK television personality Graham Norton.
“It’s an absolute honour and kind of historic,” Fey told the crowd. “Guys, I am the youngest person to ever host SNL UK!”
During the broadcast, Wet Leg delivered performances of two songs taken from their second album Moisturizer, which opened at Number 6 on Billboard’s Top Rock and Alternative Albums chart and also climbed to Number 1 on the Official Albums Chart in the United Kingdom.
The band first appeared performing the record’s fourth single “Mangetout,” a Grammy nominated song that also earned a place on Billboard’s list of the 20 best UK and Ireland songs of 2025. Later in the show they returned to play the album’s lead single “Catch These Fists.”
After their appearance on SNL UK, Wet Leg will travel back to the United States for a series of major festival dates including Coachella, Governors Ball, Bonnaroo and Outside Lands. Their US tour is scheduled to begin April 15 at the Fox Theater in Pomona, California.
Upcoming episodes of SNL UK have also been confirmed. Wolf Alice will serve as musical guest on the March 28 episode hosted by Jamie Dornan, while Kasabian will perform on the April 2 show with Riz Ahmed as host.
The show is broadcast on Sky in the United Kingdom and is available to stream on Peacock in the United States. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the first episode attracted more than 220,000 viewers on Sky. It was released in the US on March 22 via Peacock.
You can watch Wet Leg’s SNL UK performances below.
