Musician Nathaniel Rateliff made his Saturday Night Live debuted last night, delighting audiences at home and in the studio with “Redemption”, a cut from their latest album And everything is fine which is featured in the Justin Timberlake film Palmer. After years of growing success, the St. Louis native, who joined host Regina King in the live broadcast, is having a great year of breakthrough – which also includes some comments on the Oscars.
Rateliff’s latest project comes from a very intimate place, he says on his website. The rising musician sought inspiration for his third solo album, not only from the revelation of his 11-year relationship and marriage, but also from the death of his close friend and producer Richard Swift. The two became friends quickly, coming together in their shared experiences, like growing up in very religious families. Swift died after succumbing to complications related to his alcohol addiction. “I wrote ‘And It’s Still Alright’ about Richard, but just as easily it could have been about me,” Rateliff shared. “’Rush On’ is also for Richard. We struggle with many of the same problems. I think I understood in a way why he let himself go, so I tried to write from that perspective, to face the emptiness that you can’t get rid of and the danger of letting him dominate you. “
Viewers who were unaware of the singer and his work turned to social media to share their thoughts. The general consensus is that the Saturday Night Live the appearance was an invigorating success.
From his divorce in 2018, the singer-songwriter revealed that he had some problems deciding what to say in his music. “It took me a long time to be honest with myself and know that [writing about something] is part of my process of dealing with things ”, he shared with Squire. Rateliff was on tour when he started writing about the experience. “I remember writing the songs [for that set] in the desert and it was almost like you were writing in a prophetic sense, letting your subconscious go to places … But I was like, ‘Well, I really can’t say that. This gives a lot of information. ‘”
I just think it’s genuinely cool that #SNL could hire a relatively niche adult alternative rock group like Nathaniel Rateliff, who is obviously killing everything here. It brings me back to the 2007 era of really cool indie rock bands every week.
– Tall Jordan Schmidt (@TallGuySchmidt) February 14, 2021
This is not your first time at 30 Rock for a musical performance. Rateliff appeared in The Tonight Show a few years ago with his band The Night Sweats. Watch the performance of “SOB” here on YouTube.
As noted, his newly released single “Redemption” can be heard in the latest Apple TV movie Palmerstarring Justin Timberlake. The film follows a former high school football star (Timberlake) who, after spending 12 years in prison, returns home to rebuild his life and career. Alisha Wainwright, whom many may remember from the 2019 scandal hand in hand, also stars in the film. “For me, music is about what I saw in the film and what I see there in the world, of continuing to fight until we find some kind of peace and some kind of response,” Rateliff said in an interview with Variety. “It’s about hope and connection. At the end of the song, there is the phrase ‘we will keep running until we learn to find peace’ ”, he added.