Tag: Montage

Photo: Noam Galai/Getty Images for WSJ. Magazine Innovators Awards

If your brain got deep-fried watching the marvelous opening sequence to 50 Years of SNL Music, yes, it was a very intensive labor of love for Questlove, and the Emmys committee should already have a verdict. Speaking with Deadline about the method behind his creative madness, the director said that the seven-minute mash-up — which deftly remixed about a hundred SNL performances — took nearly a year to complete in the editing room. “I knew you got to gobsmack them right at the top,” he explained. “I had all this music, so I thought, I’m going to prepare this montage the way that I would prepare a DJ gig.” Questlove was asked by Lorne Michaels to direct the project in early 2021 and committed to watching every single SNL episode for research, which gave him about two and a half years to complete it before working with an editor on the montage. (Depending on the day, Quest watched between four to eight episodes.) However, he was disheartened that the editor relied on artificial intelligence to cultivate ideas.

“He kind of laughed at me said that he took the liberty of doing the same thing, but ‘I didn’t do your process, I just put a bunch of stuff in the computer and this is what it spit back to me,’” Questlove recalled about their first meeting. “I was laughing, so I didn’t have to sit through a year’s worth of SNL viewing? Then we just kind of went through my notes.” The final edit, of course, has his very human Roots crew touch all over it, because we’re doubtful ChatGPT could suggest a transition from “Hot in Herre” to “Take Me Out.” “That to me is the most important part of where we are right now in terms of technology,” Quest added. “Do we still trust humans to do this stuff or can we just type a command in and let AI do it for us?”

Questlove’s recent SNL music documentary montage took a year to make, and the result was well worth the wait. The montage, which aired during the show’s season finale, featured iconic musical moments from the show’s history spanning over four decades.

Questlove, the drummer for The Roots and music director for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, curated the montage with painstaking detail and precision. He carefully selected clips from various musical performances on SNL, showcasing the incredible talent and diversity of artists who have graced the stage over the years.

The montage featured performances from legendary artists such as Prince, Aretha Franklin, Nirvana, and Beyoncé, as well as newer acts like Billie Eilish and Lizzo. Questlove’s keen eye for musical moments and his deep appreciation for the history of music on SNL made the montage a true celebration of the show’s musical legacy.

Fans and critics alike have praised Questlove’s montage for its creativity, nostalgia, and sheer entertainment value. It serves as a reminder of the power of music to unite and inspire, and the lasting impact that SNL has had on the music industry.

Overall, Questlove’s SNL music documentary montage is a testament to his skill as a curator and his passion for music. It took a year to make, but the end result is a masterpiece that will be remembered for years to come.

Tags:

• Questlove
• SNL
• music documentary
• montage
• behind the scenes
• Saturday Night Live
• music history
• music production
• documentary filmmaking
• making of
• music industry
• Questlove documentary
• SNL music segment
• music montage
• SNL music history
• music documentary making
• music documentary process
• Questlove SNL episode
• SNL music performances
• music storytelling

#Questloves #SNL #Music #Doc #Montage #Year