Chris Rock is set to host Saturday Night Live this weekend, his first time returning to the show since he uttered the words “ladies and gentlemen, The Wallflowers!” back in 1996. Being a certified Big Deal, Rock is in a position to make some demands of his former boss Lorne Michaels, chief among which is, apparently, to just let Prince jam, man.
Prince is also scheduled to appear as this week, and according to Stereogum, will not play two songs in two separate segments like the SNL musical guests who came before him (or like he did in his SNL appearances in 1981 and 2006). Instead, the Purple One and his backing band 3RDEYEGIRL will be permitted to marinate viewers’ ears in a buttery, funk-laden sauce of cosmic sexual energy for eight uninterrupted minutes in the middle of the broadcast, which is far less time than Prince usually needs to make love—aural or otherwise—but will do, given the circumstances. This extended jam session comes at the behest of Rock, who specifically asked for Prince to serve as the musical guest for his return to Studio 8H.