Following a national trend, "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" will cut back to about two musical performances per week this year, according to Deadline.
A source cited by Variety said the number could fluctuate, but confirmed that the show will no longer include a musical guest every night. The change marks another shift for a format that has long treated live music as a tradition.
Despite the upcoming reduction, the current week includes performances from folk artist Molly Tuttle, Debbie Gibson and The Cletones and HUNTR/X from "KPop Demon Hunters," with EJAE, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami.
The move comes amid a sharp decline in late-night music appearances industry-wide.
According to a report from Consequence of Sound, the number of musical performances across late-night television dropped from approximately 800 annually between 2011 and 2013 to about 200 in 2023.
The Hollywood Reporter, citing sources, revealed that "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" music producer Jim Pitt had begun notifying industry contacts, including artist managers, record labels and promotional bookers, about the reduction. Pitt oversees the show's music bookings alongside Mac Burrus, a former member of the band sElf.
Musical performances have been a defining feature of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" since the show launched in 2003.
Over the years, the show has hosted major artists and headline-making performances, including appearances by One Direction, Eminem, who once performed live from the Empire State Building, and The Weeknd, as well as various emerging acts.
In 2024, the show continued to feature a broad mix of artists, including The Linda Lindas, My Morning Jacket, Soccer Mommy, Finneas, Red Kross, Japanese Breakfast, Smokey Robinson, Rilo Kiley, Garbage, Lil Wayne, Queens of the Stone Age, Public Enemy, Haim, Dawes and MJ Lenderman, among others. Musical performances will remain part of the show on a reduced basis.
The change follows a recent contract renewal for host Jimmy Kimmel. Last month, Variety reported that Kimmel and ABC parent company Disney reached a new agreement to keep him as host for an additional year. The deal was confirmed by three people familiar with the matter. Kimmel's prior contract was believed to run through 2026.
The deal was reached weeks after Disney temporarily removed the show from the schedule following complaints from affiliate station groups.
In September, Disney temporarily pulled "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" from the schedule for several days after major station group owners Nexstar and Sinclair objected to a monologue in which Kimmel discussed conservative leader Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated earlier that month.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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