The Fleetwood Mac musician performed “Edge of Seventeen” and “The Lighthouse” in her first appearance on the show in more than 40 years
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Stevie Nicks has made her triumphant return to Saturday Night Live!
The singer, 76, appeared as the musical guest during the Oct. 12 episode of the late-night comedy sketch series, which was hosted by Ariana Grande.
Her appearance came over 40 years after her first time on SNL. Nicks initially made her musical guest debut in December 1983, during the eighth episode of season 9. Hosted by Flip Wilson, the musician performed “Stand Back” and “Nightbird” from her second solo studio album, The Wild Heart.
For her latest appearance, Nicks first performed her latest single, “The Lighthouse.” During the song, the Fleetwood Mac musician wore an all-black look featuring a black velvet jacket and black skirt, and had sheer black fabric blowing behind her band as part of her set.
Later in the show, Nicks marked her second performance by singing her 1981 track, “Edge of Seventeen.” That performance was slightly delayed due to a technical issue that was swiftly resolved, though it led to a portrait of the singer appearing onscreen, followed by several ads, before she began the track to cheers from the SNL crowd.
Nicks recently recalled the moment she first appeared on SNL in an email interview with PEOPLE. “That was about two and a half years into my solo career, so it was nerve-wracking because it was not Fleetwood Mac; it was my solo career, so it was very scary to go on the show when you’ve been in a huge band and now you’re going on Saturday Night Live as a solo artist,” she said.
The “Edge of Seventeen” crooner added that on top of being nervous, she also ran into an issue when her friend “freaked out and had terrible stage fright” right before she was supposed to join the star to perform her second song live.
Nicks ended up finding a last-minute replacement — her sister-in-law and longtime backup singer, Lori Perry.
“It was one of those shows, that even with that horrible wrench that was thrown in the middle of it, it came off beautifully,” Nicks explained. “I’ve never been so proud of anything as I was of that night. It was a magical show, and I was thrilled, and it definitely kicked my solo career up.”