Longtime Saturday Night Live music booker Brian Siedlecki is departing from the show, multiple sources tell The Hollywood Reporter, as the program elected not to renew his contract.
Siedlecki, a well-respected producer and talent booker, has been with SNL for nearly 30 years, starting as an intern back in 1996. He’s helped maintain the show’s status as one of the most-coveted music bookings in entertainment, a must-stop for artists plugging their new records and a major milestone in establishing burgeoning acts as superstars.
Across his tenure, Siedlecki has helped book countless superstars for the show; as Billboard reported last year, his very first booking was Nelly Furtado in 2001, when “I’m Like a Bird” first hit. SNL’s musical guests during Siedlecki’s time with the show have included a wide range of stars from legacy icons like Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen to more contemporary pop stars like Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan and Olivia Rodrigo.
Siedlecki didn’t respond to request for comment on the matter. SNL still has two longtime bookers, Keri Powers and Rebecca Schwartz. Powers has been with the show since 2014, while Schwartz has been with SNL since 2015.
When asked for comment, NBC said that the network “doesn’t comment on staffing.”
The news on Siedlecki comes just over a month before SNL is scheduled to return for its 52nd season on September 26. The show had a more front-facing departure heading into its latest season as well, with Chloe Fineman announcing in July that she was leaving the show after seven seasons.
“Seven years is kind of like the classic way [at SNL], and then like right as my contract was up, this amazing David E. Kelley opportunity came in like completely out of the blue,” Fineman told THR on the red carpet at The Dink premiere in July. “I did a little chemistry read and it was off to the races; it just felt like a perfect time. I’m really proud of everything, but it’s hard. I’m genuinely really good friends with everybody, and I genuinely couldn’t love that job more. So it’s really bittersweet, but I’m gonna be in New York. I’m down the street. Maybe you’ll see me.”
Credit: Source link