Manifesting a 2024 filled with new music from Megan Thee Stallion. On Sunday, the rap star joined the telecast of Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve, where she performed a medley of her hit songs shortly after the East Coast midnight countdown.
Backed by dancers dressed in purple that matched her own fit, the rapper ran through a fiery set, which included “Cobra,” “Savage,” “Her,” and culminated with “Body.” Purple streamers exploded and cascaded around them as she delivered the finale. She asked mid-set, “Y’all ready to turn up?” as she and her dancers inspired the crowd in Times Square to groove and sing along.
The new performance marks Megan’s return to the New Year’s Eve telecast after she performed “Body” and “Savage Remix” back in 2020.
Megan’s set followed performances from New York by Jelly Roll; Sabrina Carpenter, who performed “Feather” and “Nonsense” backed by male dancers in suits; and Tyla, who delivered “Water.” Several other artists hit the stage broadcasting from Los Angeles, including Nile Rodgers and Chic, Bebe Rexha, Janelle Monáe, Reneé Rapp, and Green Day. Post Malone performed from Vegas, and NewJeans from South Korea.
On the music front, Megan only released a handful of singles in 2023 — but marked new beginnings this year. She joined Cardi B for “WAP” follow-up “Bongos” in September, sang “Out Alpha the Alpha” for the Dicks: The Musical, dropped the single “Cobra,” joined Reneé Rapp on “Not My Fault” from Mean Girls, and aided the Big Mouth soundtrack with “Pussy Don’t Lie.”
“Cobras exemplify courage and self-reliance,” Megan wrote in an Instagram post about her song “Cobra.” “They stand tall and fierce in the face of challenges, teaching one to tap into their inner strength and rely on oneself to conquer their threats. Emulating the cobra helps one be more confident in the person they are within.”
The rapper recently settled a dragging lawsuit with her former record label, 1501 Entertainment. Now working on an independent level, she’s funding her releases herself.
“The budget is coming from me. Motherfucking Hot Girl Productions,” she shared on a recent Instagram Live, explaining why she isn’t jumping straight into another label contract. “The next shit y’all about to see is all straight from Megan Thee Stallion’s brain, Megan Thee Stallion’s wallet. We in my pockets, hotties, so let’s do our big one.”
Megan’s last album arrived in 2022 with Traumazine, which featured “Budget” with Latto and “Consistency” with Jhené Aiko. She dropped Something for Thee Hotties in 2021 and LPs Suga and Good News in 2020.
The event marks the first year that Dick Clark Productions puts on New Year’s Rockin’ Eve since it was acquired by Penske Media Eldridge, the parent company of Rolling Stone and other entertainment magazines and brands.