Pharrell is soaking up all his remaining live performances before he joins The Voice this fall and he did his new NBC home a solid by performing his Academy Award-nominated hit, “Happy” on Saturday Night Live last night.

Backed by a children’s flash mob, the star Neptune rocked forest green edition of his infamous hat, which has since gained the public’s approval. Although the chart-topping record has been the biggest splash from his latest studio album G I R L, he used his following set to give the second single a bit of leeway. “Marilyn Monroe” featured a cleverly placed all-girl orchestra as well as his Spider-Man 2 soundtrack partner Hans Zimmer.

Artists appearing in SNL skits has become a dying trend since for most of the decade but Pharrell was a good sport and appeared in a talent show spoof with the episode’s star Anna Kendrick. Skateboard P couldn’t keep his composure given the silliness of the sketch and made it more funny than it actually was.

Check out the happiest performance on earth in the video player below and continue on through the gallery to see the rest of the Pharrell SNL highlights.

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Photo: NBC, Instagram/Pharrell, I Am Ledon, Ella Lesko

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Lorne Michaels and SNL are adding a bit more color…commentary to the upcoming 40th season of the storied sketch comedy show. Michael Che–most recently of The Daily Show–will be joining Colin Jost at the trusty Weekend Update desk this year.

Via The Wrap:

Named one of Rolling Stone’s “50 Funniest People,” Buzzfeed’s “50 Hottest Men in Comedy” and Variety’s “Top 10 Comics to Watch,” Che has been a writer on “SNL,” a correspondent on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and has performed stand-up on “Late Night with Seth Meyers” and “Late Show with David Letterman.” His first comedy special was Comedy Central’s “The Half Hour,” which aired earlier this year.

Repertory player Cecily Strong will return as a full-time cast member. Strong is well known for her Update features and sketches, including “The Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation with at a Party,” which Rolling Stone hailed as an “instant classic.” The recurring character of a ditz

Che thanked Jon Stewart and the rest of The Daily Show crew for the huge stepping stone they placed in his career following the announcement.

The first episode of SNL40 airs on September 27 with Guardians of the Galaxy actor Chris Pratt and Ariana Grande as the musical guest.

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Photo: PNP/WENN.com

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While Chris Rock held down the hosting duties, Prince was the musical guest on last night’s episode of Saturday Night Live.

The purple one was actually dressed in black and gold, sported an afro and wore sunglasses, with a lens for his third eye, as he performed an eight minute set. Of course he killed it.

Watch it below.

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Photo: NBC

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Last week’s Saturday Night Live was an immediate success, thanks to James Franco’s versatile performances and Nicki Minaj’s Pinkprint booty. However it’s a sketch on Ferguson that didn’t make it to television audiences due to time constraints that is possible the best dose of comedic relief the nation has seen on the touchy subject yet.

Keenan Thompson and Cecily Strong both play generally chipper anchors on St. Louis’ news morning show when they’re forced with the unnerving task of playing the bubbly buffoons in the wake of the riots after officer Darren Wilson was left off the hook for killing unarmed teen Mike Brown. Which is where Franco comes in, playing the touring celebrity chef who inadvertently keeps saying all the wrong things.

Watch the SNL Ferguson skit below. It was brilliantly done and sad it couldn’t have been aired.

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Photo: Saturday Night Live

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Eddie Murphy, who became a star on NBC’s long-running late-night sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, has not returned to the set in 31 years. The actor and comedian decided to bury the hatchet and will return for SNL‘s 40th anniversary show according to a recent interview.

Murphy was a guest on NewsOne Now with host Roland Martin, and he shared tales about why he stopped releasing music and his current resurgence on the scene in that arena. Murphy shared that he longs to return to the stage as both a comic and performer, but only if he’s able to incorporate all of what he’s done in the course of his career.

Murphy mentioned his time on SNL as being instrumental in building his love of the live show aspect. Martin then asked why hasn’t Murphy returned to SNL like many other alums have and gave a straight answer.

“It just never worked out where the timing was right for me to do it,” said. Murphy. “They’re actually having a 40th anniversary, I think, in two weeks. I’m going to that, and that’ll be the first time I’ve been back since I left.”

According to the Huffington Post, Murphy shared his distaste for SNL in a 2011 Rolling Stone interview in where alum David Spade made a dig at Murphy’s movie flops. Hurt by the joke, Murphy said he made a fuss about it but has since come forward and said that he has no issue with Spade.

Watch the interview with NewsOne Now below.

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Photo: Cousart/JFXimages/WENN

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Bill Cosby doesn’t have many friends these days so when someone does something nice for him, he’s sure to acknowledge them in public.

It was recently revealed that Eddie Murphy scoffed at the opportunity to portray Bill Cosby during the SNL 40 Anniversary Special with a direct reference to his ongoing sexual allegations drama. The embattled funnyman reached out to NBC News–through a spokesperson–to express his elation over Murphy skipping the skit.

“I am very appreciative of Eddie and I applaud his actions,” the ghostwriter of Cosby said.

It was fellow SNL alum Norm Macdonald’s task in convincing Murphy to do the sketch, where he was to appear on the show-stealing Jeopardy! segment but Murphy reportedly said, “He won’t kick a man while he’s down.”

A class act from a man, who, is eagerly seeking to reclaim past glory on his own end.

Devil’s Advocates: Celebrities Who Defended Bill Cosby

Now the 1980s Eddie Murphy? That guy wouldn’t have settled for a cameo of Cosby slander. He would have hosted a “Bill Cosby Jell-O Wrestling Contest” in full character.

Relive this clip from Eddie Murphy Raw down below and see why.

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Photos: NBC, WENN

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Miley Cyrus will be hosting Saturday Night Live tonight (Oct. 3) and folks are expecting the former Disney princess to bring some of the same edginess she’s been displaying for the past few years. But what everyone is secretly anticipating is how Cyrus plans to respond to Nicki Minaj‘s “What’s Good?” jab during the 2015 VMAs in August.

HollywoodLife.com has learned that Cyrus intends to check Minaj, pop darling Taylor Swift, and others in a skit employing SNL actress Vanessa Bayer. Of course, it was Cyrus that started the beef with rivals Minaj and Swift. The Queens rapper aggressively addressed Cyrus’ comments while onstage during the live VMAs broadcast last month.

More from HollywoodLife.com:

Miley has already had a lot to say about Nicki and Taylor, but as it turns out, she’s not done yet! The former Disney star is planning to call out her rivals in a live skit with the help of SNL actress and Miley Cyrus impersonator, Vanessa Bayer. “Currently lined up for the show is “The Miley Cyrus Show” [skit], where Miley will address her feuds,” an insider revealed to HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY. “They are still writing the skit and figuring out who Miley will play, seeing as how she will not be playing herself — those duties will go to Vanessa Bayer.” While it’s still unclear how Miley will address her rivals, if there’s one thing we know to be true about the 22-year-old, it’s that she’s not afraid to say (or do) what’s on her mind.

According to an insider close to Minaj, they told HollywoodLife that she’ll be watching to see what’s said, if anything. But if the statements from the insider are true, Cyrus might want to go into hiding for a bit.

“Nicki’s tired of playing games with these kids in Hollywood and if Miley’s going to attack her on SNL, it’s going to be open season on her Hannah Montana a**,” said the source. “Nicki will be watching the show, keeping both her eyes and ears open for the shenanigans Miley’s sure to come with.”

Okay, then. Looks like SNL just became must-watch television this weekend.

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Photo: MTV

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Tracy Morgan and his continuing journey to full recovery after the tragic 2014 New Jersey Turnpike accident with a Walmart truck has been nothing short of inspirational. The comedian and actor made a triumphant return to his old Saturday Night Live stomping grounds, delivering some of the best laughs the show has seen in some time.

Morgan was the guest host for SNL last Saturday, and it was emotional, hilarious and featured more surprise guests than we could count. Not only was Morgan’s opening monologue essentially a 30 Rock reunion, it was also a chance for America to see that the comedian still had what it takes.

It’s almost unfair to try and select which of Morgan’s appearances were the best, especially with the return of beloved characters Brian Fellows and Astronaut Jones.

We’ve selected a couple of our favorites, including the opening monologue, but the entire episode can be watched in full by following this link.

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Photo: Saturday Night Live

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There’s a guy who’s been posing as Tracy Morgan’s son for about three years now. Lou Morgan is a struggle (aspiring) comedian, who reportedly celebrated Tracy’s SNL appearance at a New York City club last Saturday.

Lou doesn’t know Tracy, and vice verse, but that’s not stopping him from showing some love to the father that never existed. According to the New York Post he told a DJ in a New York City club to play a song in honor of his father. His Facebook page is also all about Tracy, and he got a “30 Rock” haircut.

Unfortunately, calling Tracy his dad online and in public, isn’t enough to convince people they’re related. “Tracy does not have a son named Lou,” his rep said. “It is just someone making stuff up. No one on our side knows this guy.”

Yikes.

Lou now says his last name isn’t Morgan, but it definitely looks like he’s obsessed with Tracy, and that’s not very healthy.

Hit the flip for some his photos.

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Photos: Facebook

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GOP presidential hopeful Ben Carson has become a bit of a punchline lately, especially after details of his past life have been under the microscope for being less than believable. Saturday Night Live cleverly took aim at Carson’s so-called thug life past and mocked the former street tough turned neurosurgeon in a humorous skit last night.

SNL‘s Jay Pharoah took on the role of Carson and played up his mild-mannered nature. The skit takes place in the late ’60’s in the Detroit streets. As Carson claims, he tried to stab a friend which was later revealed to be a cousin. The knife never found its mark, this after the vicious attack was blocked by a belt buckle. Carson’s mother confirmed the story happened in a 1997 interview in Parade magazine, but that hasn’t stopped the flood of jokes at his expense.

The SNL skit is pure greatness, complete with an appearance by Black Jesus and the thwarting of Carson’s supposed hammer attack against his mother. We won’t give it all away because it’s low-key hilarious despite the subdued laughs of the crowd. Even better is watching Pharoah almost crack up during the sketch.

It is rather amazing how Carson’s story is crumbling under his feet after he was considered a legitimate frontrunner to win the GOP’s nomination. Expect to see more of this slander in the weeks to come, which unfortunately, boosts Donald Trump’s profile but beggars can’t be choosers, right?

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Photo: SNL

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It was revealed Monday (Aug. 8) evening that Saturday Night Live veterans Jay Pharoah and Taran Killam will not be returning to the ensemble cast this coming season. Although some industry chatter suggests that the pair might have been fired, there are reports saying they’re simply seeking new opportunities.

TV Line exclusively reports:

TVLine has learned exclusively that Taran Killam and Jay Pharoah are leaving NBC’s late-night institution and will pursue other opportunities. Both had been with the show for six seasons.

An NBC spokesperson confirmed the departures.

Killam will likely be best remembered for his impersonations of Matthew McConaughey, Marco Rubio and Fox & Friends co-host Steve Doocy. Pharoah, meanwhile, famously channeled the likes of Jay-Z, Will Smith, President Obama and GOP presidential hopeful Dr. Ben Carson.

In an Uproxx interview, Killam said that he was blindsided by the news that the final year of his seven-year contract wouldn’t be picked up. While Pharoah and his reps have not spoken on the shakeup at SNL, TV Line updated with a story that little-known cast member Jon Rudnitsky will also be making his exit although the reasons are vague at the moment.

SNL creator Lorne Michaels has not spoken publicly on the matter just yet.

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Photo: Nicky Nelson/WENN.com

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Tom Hanks applied his award-winning acting chops to the best of his ability and channeled a hilarious character meant to embody the supporters of Donald Trump‘s presidential race. During a skit segment titled “Black Jeopardy,” Hanks made the most of the moment and nailed the impersonation with ease.

SNL troupe member Keenan Thompson played the show’s host, Darnell Hayes, and fellow cast members Sasheer Zamata and Leslie Jones rounded out the rest of the skit. Hanks, playing the character of Doug, effortlessly put on a southern drawl complete with the tattered jean jacket and “Make America Great Again” cap to boot. While Doug surprises Darnell with his answers, even to the point of getting a personal handshake congratulations that almost went wrong, it’s the self-awareness of Doug that takes the skit over the top.

We won’t try to recap the entire skit, but check out Tom Hanks spoof Trump supporters and make a solid political point to boot in the video below courtesy of NBC’s Saturday Night Live. Hopefully, Hanks’ son, Chet, has unleashed himself from the struggle and watched his dad in action.

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Photo: NBC

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Chance The Rapper was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live last night. It was the Chicago MC’s second time holding down the SNL stage, #fortheculture.

First up was “Finish Line/Drown,” along with Noname Gypsy, followed by a rousing performance of “Same Drugs,” with Chance at the piano.

Chance and Kenan Thompson rapping in a skit called “Jingle Barak,” with host Casey Affleck as Jesus, Leslie Jones spittin’ game at Joe Biden and an appearance from DMC warning you about white men in red hats kind of knocks.

Watch Chance’s SNL rendition of “Finish Line/Drown”  below and “Same Drugs” on the flip.

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Photo: screen cap

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Tina Fey made a return to her former stomping grounds of SNL and joined the Weekend Update: Summer Edition show Thursday night, taking the time to aim some sharp barbs at President Donald Trump. Hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che welcomed the University of Virginia alum who took her segment to blast the recent events in Charlottesville in a fashion that some deemed too forgiving of racists.

Fey joined the set decked out in her college gear and launched right into the bit in where she clowned the alt-right protests that took place last week and the handful of similar rallies to come. While the incidents that took place were indeed serious, Fey’s take on how to respond to the rise in racism is to simply eat a cake from an establishment owned by a person of color and scream into it. There might have been some deeper underlying, but some folks on Twitter wasn’t having it.

We caught some of the positive and negative Twitter reactions to Tina Fey’s appearance below and on the following pages. We’ve also included Thursday’s Weekend Update: Summer Edition episode in full courtesy of NBC below.

Love Tina Fey, but I'm REALLY not feeling her "Ignore racism and stress-eat instead" take. It strikes me as willfully naive and privileged.

— Tom & Lorenzo (@tomandlorenzo) August 18, 2017

And yes, some loved the bit.

Tina Fey weighing in on Charlottesville while devouring a sheet cake is everything pic.twitter.com/AsQbwzog4T

— mat whitehead (@matwhi) August 18, 2017

And there’s the suggested possibility that folks on Twitter not feeling Fey might have missed the joke.

It seemed v obvious to me Tina Fey was doing a bit? not actually advocating a thing? Colin was the straightman going "how would that help?"

— Dana Schwartz (@DanaSchwartzzz) August 18, 2017

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Photo: screen cap

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This weekend’s season premiere episode of Saturday Night Live featured Jay-Z as its musical guest and given the climate of the country right now, the comedic edge skewed towards the political as expected. During the “Weekend Edition” segment, co-host Michael Che took aim at President Donald Trump, calling him a “cheap cracker” and “b*tch” in the process.

Che joined Lin-Manuel Miranda and others shouting down Trump’s recent digs at Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria. While most of the response on Twitter didn’t go to the point of name-calling, Che didn’t pull any punches.

“Oh, really, Donald, you b*tch? Was she nasty to you?” Che said, referencing San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz and Trump’s surprisingly brisk weekend tweets towards the disaster relief efforts in the island region. “This isn’t that complicated, man. It’s hurricane relief. These people need help. You just did this for white people, twice. Do the same thing.”

Check out Michael Che’s takedown of Cheeto Trump’s Puerto Rico jabs at around the 2:36 mark in the clip below.

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Photo: screen cap/SNL

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Tiffany Haddish had a huge 2017 as the scene-stealing breakout star of Girls Trip alongside Jada Pinkett-Smith, Queen Latifah, and Regina Hall. Haddish’s career continues its rise as she becomes the first Black woman comedian to host the weekly sketch show Saturday Night Live.

Forbes reports:

Tiffany Haddish makes history this fall by becoming the first black female comedian to host Saturday Night Live. The hosting gig is a highlight of a remarkable year for the star, whose film Girls Trip, exceeded (some folks) expectations by hauling in $113.3 million at the domestic box office – the first-ever black-led/directed/produced film to do so.

Haddish, known for her wry humor, will be joined on SNL by Taylor Swift, who is the musical guest for the evening. Between the two women and their respective fan clubs, the show’s viewership is highly likely to go up and will certainly trend for the evening it airs. (And not for nothing, SNL’s been hitting some home runs with their hosting/musical guest matchups this fall. After the Haddish/Swift matchup this Saturday, the world will likely stop everything they’re doing to tune in to Chance the Rapper and Eminem the following Saturday.)

Haddish is clearly ready for the big moment, and you can see just how much by viewing Instagram post below.

This Saturday, 11/11 on #SNL!! Can you believe I will be the very #first black female comedian host?!? #SheReady Photographer: @eltonandersonjr @creatorsofcolor Stylist: @bryonjavar Designer: @styland Shoes: @loribluofficial Hair: @alexander_armand Makeup: @rebekahaladdin

A post shared by Tiffany Haddish (@tiffanyhaddish) on Nov 7, 2017 at 2:29pm PST

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Photo: WENN.com

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Chance The Rapper appeared to be very much a natural during his hosting gig for SNL, and it included a variety of high moments. The Chicago rapper turned on the charm for the show, and fans on Twitter reacted in kind.

Chance opened up his SNL spot with a “Chance-giving” monologue, opening with a song about Thanksgiving after stating there are no such songs for the American holiday. Chance also shined in a skit where he and his mother, played by Leslie Jones, visit Wayne Manor and confront Bruce Wayne about Batman’s rough treatment of petty criminals in his neighborhood. Of course, the sentiment rang loud and clear that Chance was poking at police brutality in inner cities.

Perhaps the most-talked-about skit of the night involved Chance, Kenan Thompson, and Chris Redd as the 90s-styled R&B trio De-Von-Tré, and their slow jam “Come Back, Barack” was an impassioned plea towards former President Barack Obama to take the reins of the White House once more. In the same show, Eminem was the musical guest, performing his hits “Stan” and “Love The Way You Lie” to raucous applause.

Twitter was on fire with the reactions and we’ve captured some of the best. Take in some of the skits and the reactions below and on the following pages. Did you have a favorite moment? Let us know which one it was in the comments section.

Chance the Rapper did a hockey skit on SNL, this is hilarious. 😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/CgUPbDpdCc

— Hockey Central (@HockeyCentraI) November 19, 2017

Definitely one of the best episodes of #SNL I’ve seen in a long time. Chance The Rapper did a great job hosting and Eminem tore the house down performing Stan & Love The Way You Lie. 👌#EminemOnSNL #ChanceOnSNL @nbcsnl pic.twitter.com/2jKbueFzki

— Ian (@IanWilliam1987) November 19, 2017

Chance The Rapper just won this season of SNL pic.twitter.com/F3XLDf4PSa

— Steve Perrault (@Steve_Perrault) November 19, 2017

A week after Tiffany Haddish, Chance The Rapper is hosting #SNL, making it just the second time in show history that there have been back to back black hosts. First time was March 2009 with The Rock and Tracy Morgan. pic.twitter.com/mgSvCMzs4f

— Martenzie Johnson (@Martenzie) November 19, 2017

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Photo: screen cap

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Drake held down hosting and performing duties on Saturday Night Live last night. The former Degrassi: The Next Generation actor looked comfortable as he played a variety of characters throughout the night.

The YMCMB rapper’s wig game was hilarious as he played everything from Alex Rodriguez, to a Steve Urkel version of Lil Wayne to a morning news show anchor. While Drizzy’s Katt Williams impression was pretty spot on, the Bar Mitvah monologue was a bit too stereotype heavy, though.

In case you missed it, check out all the performances in the following pages starting with the cold open with Drake as a lawsuit happy A-Rod below.

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Photo: NBC

Drake hosting Saturday Night Live included double duty with him performing a pair of songs during each of his musical sets. The YMCMB rapper kicked renditions of “Started From The Bottom,” “Trophies,” “Hold On We’re Going Home” and “From Time.”

Under a red spotlight, Drizzy performed his hit “Started From The Bottom.” Near the song’s conclusion, the horns from “Trophies” are heard and he eventually performs the song’s chorus.

The second performance was a ballad version of “Hold On We’re Going Home” which eventually shifted into “From Time,” with singer Jhene Aiko joining him on stage.

Watch Drake perform “Started From The Bottom/Trophies” below and “Hold On We’re Going Home/From Time” on the flip. You can check out all of Drake’s acting on SNL right here.

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Photo: NBC

For anyone who has ever watched Jeopardy and experienced the shell shock PTSD of 10th grade history class, SNL has created a skit just for you.

Last night’s episode featured host Louis C.K. acting as a college professor of African-American studies on a game show skit titled “Black Jeopardy.” SNL has boosted up their Black roster considerably with the addition of Sasheer Zamata at the top of the year so they have more flexibility with their sketches.

Via Huffington Post:

“Black Jeopardy!” is hosted by Darnell Hayes or “Alex Treblack” (Kenan Thompson) and features categories such as “It’s Been A Minute,” “White People,” and “Psssh.” Let’s just say it’s not exactly what African Studies professor Mark (Louis C.K.) had in mind when he signed up.

Watch the sketch above to see how C.K.’s character reacts to the final “Jeopardy!” category (“Rap Songs That Begin With The Letter ‘N'”) as well as some hilarious responses from his fellow contestants played by Jay Pharoah and Sasheer Zamata.

Check out the hilarious (and stereotypical for the easily offended) skit in the video below.

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Photo: NBC