Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade introduces new balloon characters
The annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade returned with some favorite characters as well as new balloons, like Monkey D. Luffy.
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is here and the stars are ready to celebrate.
The 97th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade returned to its annual holiday tradition Thursday, starting 30 minutes early on the streets of New York City and featuring fan-favorite balloons like Chase from “Paw Patrol” and SpongeBob, as well as new balloons like Beagle Scout Snoopy and showed Po from “Kung Fu Panda.”
Jon Batiste opened the parade with a rousing performance before “Today” show hosts and parade hosts Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and Al Roker kicked off the balloon and float festivities. The parade began with Brandy, Chicago, Pentatonix and Cher headlining performances – plus a special surprise message from Beyoncé.
Stay tuned for details on all performances and celebrity appearances:
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Cher closes out the Thanksgiving parade with Santa Claus and the Radio City Rockettes
Cher, the headliner of the 97th annual parade, brought holiday cheer to the annual festivities.
“We were ready for this performance all morning. Finally he is here. What can be said about this person that hasn’t already been said? She is an icon in every sense of the word,” said Kotb as she introduced the singer. “No one does it like her.”
Cher, 77, took the parade stage to perform “DJ Play a Christmas Song” from her new album “Christmas.”
The Grammy winner wore a shimmering silver coat, which she removed to reveal her ensemble, which included a black tie, white button-down shirt, black and white pants, and sheer black fingerless gloves. Surrounded by dancers in red nutcracker looks and silver costumes, Cher performed some dance moves of her own and ended the performance surrounded by red hearts.
The Radio City Rockettes achieved a historic feat by making their 67th appearance in the parade. The rousing dance troupe danced to “Christmas Lights” just before Santa Claus made his appearance alongside “Abbott Elementary” star Sheryl Lee Ralph as Mrs. Claus to herald the start of the holiday season.
Beyoncé shares a look at the trailer for “Renaissance.”
Beyoncé appeared during the parade for a special video message.
Wearing a studded leather jacket and dangling silver earrings, the singer said, “Hey, it’s Beyoncé wishing you and your family a happy Thanksgiving.”
“It is a great honor to share with you the first look at the trailer for the ‘Renaissance’ film,” said the award-winning singer and, according to Kotb, “voice of a generation.”
The teaser begins with Beyoncé’s daughter Rumi standing behind the camera, filming her multi-hyphenate mother. “Rumi, can I teach you a trick?” You have to turn it (the camera) to the side. Yes, there we have it,” says Beyoncé.
During the trailer, moments from the Renaissance World Tour stage flash, including guest appearances from Megan Thee Stallion and Diana Ross. “At this point, I don’t have to prove anything to anyone,” Beyoncé says in a voiceover. “We create our own world. This is my reward. Nobody can take that away from me.”
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Jon Batiste opens Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Grammy-winning artist opened the parade with an energetic performance of his song “Worship” surrounded by dancers.
Batiste rocked a monochrome chartreuse ensemble for his performance look before ushering in the start of the parade: “Now it’s time for us to come together for the 97th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. I declare that today is a day of unity, of healing, of… celebration. So come on everyone, let’s have a parade!”
Chicago shares Thanksgiving inspiration, Brandy, En Vogue and Bell, Biv DeVoe bring back the ’90s
Veteran band Chicago came to the Wonder Bread Float for a performance of “You’re the Inspiration,” marking the fourth time the hitmakers have been asked to take part in the famous holiday season kickoff, and they spoke about the honor parade ahead of time.
“It’s not something that’s normally done,” the band’s Lee Loughnane told USA TODAY of Chicago’s numerous performances over the years. “The fun part is being part of the parade itself and seeing thousands of people lining the streets. You must be freezing your butt off because we’re on the float!”
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Singer Brandy performed a melodic rendition of “Someday at Christmas,” every bit as sweet as the Brach candy float she performed on.
Popular ’90s group En Vogue joined forces on the Kalahari Resorts float for their song “Free Your Mind” (and the trendy headwear to match).
Bell Biv DeVoe performed a few dance moves to her hit song “Poison” on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles float, teased a snippet of her new song and sampled “Apache” by The Sugarhill Gang.
Enhypen, Pentatonix, Jessie James Decker, Jimmy Fallon and the Roots perform
Country act Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors boarded the float for Solo Stove, which recently made waves with Snoop Dogg for a “smoke-free” fire pit ad campaign while singing along to new song “Find Your People.”
“You gotta find your people // The ones who make you feel good,” Holcomb sang.
Country singer Alex Smith and violinist Amanda Shaw performed his song “Bootshake” on the Louisiana float, while fans heard “Tangled in Tinsel” with singer Jessie James Decker.
“Emily in Paris” actress and singer Ashley Park joined the Sesame Street float, singing alongside iconic characters like Big Bird, Elmo and Cookie Monster. The members of the a capella pop group Pentatonix sang their Christmas hit “Mistletoe”.
Husband and wife singers David Foster and Katherine McPhee got into the holiday spirit with “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” while Jimmy Fallon and the Roots performed their version of the Ramones’ “Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want to Fight Tonight).”
Singer and former “American Idol” contestant Jax delivered a rousing rendition of “Are You Gonna Be My Guy” (an adapted version of the original “Are You Gonna Be My Girl”), while K-pop group Enhypen joined in “Are You Gonna Be My Guy” followed. Baby Shark” provided an energetic performance that included the famous catchy theme song for the animated shark.
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Colombian singer Manuel Turizo performed his “La Bachata” on the Lego float and “Bel-Air” star Jabari Banks sang his version of “We Are the Champions” on the Peacock float in honor of the upcoming Olympics.
Broadway cast members of “Shucked,” “Back to the Future” and “Spamalot” share musical moments, Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells highlight balloons
Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells, who starred this year in “Gutenberg! The Musical!” brought some of their comedic performances into the morning’s festivities and highlighted some of the balloons and floats during the parade.
The cast of the Broadway musical “& Juliet” made their way to a performance of the Demi Lovato hit “Confident,” one of the many pop songs in the jukebox musical featuring music by Swedish pop songwriter Max Martin.
The cast of the Broadway revival of Monty Python’s “Spamalot,” which opened a week before the parade, gathered for a rousing medley of songs, including “Knights of the Round Table.”
Cast members of “How to Dance in Ohio,” which features 12 autistic actors making their Broadway debut and is based on the award-winning HBO documentary of the same name, performed “Getting Ready for the Dance.”
The “Shucked” cast, including Tony Award-winning star Alex Newell, performed their opening number, “Corn,” from the musical.
“Back to the Future: The Musical” and several of its Broadway cast, including Casey Likes and Roger Bart (as well as the time-traveling DeLorean), gave their showpiece performance a futuristic and nostalgic twist.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden share Thanksgiving message
Roker wished President Joe Biden a belated happy birthday before asking him for his Thanksgiving message.
“I think we need to remember how blessed we are to live in the greatest nation in the world,” the president said. “Today is about coming together, thanking the country we call home, and thanking all firefighters, police officers, first responders and our troops, some of whom are stationed at home or abroad. I’ve never been so optimistic.”
“I think it’s important that we all commit to an act of kindness today. So call someone and wish them a happy Thanksgiving or do something good,” said First Lady Jill Biden.
Who will perform in the Thanksgiving Day Parade this year?
Batiste and Cher will help usher in the holiday season.
Here are the other celebrities who will appear on the float during the parade broadcast:
- Bell Biv DeVoe
- brandy
- Chicago
- In fashion
- Enhypen
- David Foster and Katharine McPhee
- Drew Holcomb and the neighbors
- Jessie James Decker
- Ashley Park with “Sesame Street” Muppets
- Pentatonix
- Paul Russell
- Amanda Shaw and Alex Smith
- Manuel Turizo