By his own account, Grammy-winning musician and The Roots bandleader Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson has been involved with Saturday Night Live in every possible role — except for the one that he wants most.

“I’ve been a punchline on ‘Weekend Update.’ I’ve been part of a Timothée Chalamet sketch. I’ve been mentioned in monologues,” he says. “I’m a part of that ecosystem almost in every way but the one way I want to be, which is musical guest. … The Roots are working on their 17th album right now, so I’m still hanging on to my dream.”

Now, as SNL marks its 50th anniversary, Questlove has a new documentary, highlighting the musical guests and music comedy sketches featured over the decades. Ladies & Gentlemen… 50 Years of SNL Music is the work of a storied musician and filmmaker who remembers watching the show when he was a kid growing up in Philly.

“I was there from the very, very beginning,” Questlove says. “[There] was nothing like it. I know that’s the cliché that you’re going to hear a lot about this 50th anniversary, but there was truly nothing like it on television.”

One change he’s noticed over the years, both on SNL and on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where he’s bandleader, is that today’s musical guests are more likely to be lip-syncing than their predecessors were. He calls it the “post-Thriller effect,” whereby musicians feel pressure to dance and perform perfectly every time.

“The Thriller effect is, it must be perfect,” he says. “And I’m kind of from the school of warts and all. Like, I love seeing the warts. I love seeing the pimples, the mistakes. To me, that’s the human touch. And I think people need to trust that more. But, you know, things don’t have to be Instagram filter perfect 24/7.”

Part 2 of Fresh Air‘s interview with Questlove, about his other documentary on Hulu, SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius), will air in coming weeks.

Interview highlights

On the documentary portraying things going wrong or not as planned  

That’s the thing about SNL is there’s a risk factor involved. And usually it starts with “no.” Like Eddie Murphy talks about, I did not want to do hot tub with James Brown. Justin Timberlake goes on and on about trying to convince Beyoncé to do this “Single Ladies” sketch. Like, everything starts [with] “no.” And it’s, like, “Wow, you almost talked yourself out of history.” And I’m trying to get people in the mind state that, oftentimes we get in our own heads about why something won’t work. And sometimes you just got to take a risk and you never know. This might be part of the American fiber, the history of it.

On a 2004 incident in which Ashlee Simpson was shown to be lip syncing on SNL

Ashlee Simpson had a sore throat and was a little iffy about her singing, so she opted to lip-sync instead. And her drummer, who’s controlling on the music, accidentally plays the wrong song for the second song.

They could have just patiently just stopped the song and started all over again as if nothing happened. But she infamously does a weird dance and runs offstage, kind of humiliated, and they go to commercial. It just so happens that Oz Rodriguez, my co-director of this documentary, said that they also have the audio recording of the production room, like what was happening at the time. And for me, it was so hilarious to hear the producers and the directors inside of the control room. To me, it sounds like a bunch of teenagers that stole their parents’ car in San Francisco and the brakes just give out in a San Francisco hill going down 100 mph. Like, what do we do? Oh no! You get to see what’s under the trunk. And that, to me, is the most fascinating part of SNL, how it’s able to happen every week without fail.

On SNL introducing America to rap

Saturday Night Live is the first time that America and the world will get to see what hip-hop culture is. The very first rap performance on TV is when Deborah Harry hosts the show in 1981 and brings on Funky 4 + 1. … There were other popular groups at the time, like there was Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five and The Sugarhill Gang, both [with], like, platinum hits and really music- and culture-changing songs at the time. But she took a liking to this group because it was similar to Blondie, a band that had a woman in the lead of it. …

For me, that’s such an SNL move where those first 10 years, they weren’t about who’s the most popular person to bring ratings? And it was always like the cool factor, like, who’s the most popular person now? Who’s the person under that person that we could give a boost to? And that’s like a prime example of how SNL always had their finger in the pulse of who’s next. And as a result, come 20 years later, a lot of those first-time acts … like them getting Run-D.M.C. before Run-D.M.C. was Run-D.M.C or them getting Prince before Prince was Prince, or the Talking Heads or Devo, whoever. A lot of those risks that they took in the first 10 to 15 years, those guys will wind up being, like, the household names and the fiber of the mainstream once SNL becomes the mainstream, instead of the underground. So Deborah Harry using her power to bring attention to a culture that no one knew about like that is a prime moment of the SNL effect and how it builds American entertainment culture.

On the un-hummable SNL theme song

It’s the most iconic, nondescript theme song. Pretty much any Saturday that The Roots aren’t touring and they’re taping, I’m in the audience, watching, and that, to me, is one of the most humorous things ever. Like, you know it when you hear it, you know, that’s SNL. It’s a feeling. It’s almost like it’s the last theme that offers a feeling, but not any evidence of it. It’s like trying to put water in your pocket or something like that. It’s abundant, but it’s whatever you want it to be. … I admire the fact that SNL, for 50 years, has been able to provide a feeling without necessarily melodic evidence to it.

On musical guests at The Tonight Show being consumed with nerves

I’m really big on micro meditation and just sitting in a quiet room for, like, 10 minutes before I go on, because sometimes you have to just calm yourself down so that you can really focus on what you have to do. But a lot of times, artists are in their own heads and they often talk themselves out of the magic, because when you’re worrying, you’re almost praying for something bad to happen — that’s my definition of worrying. “I hope I don’t mess up.” You’re basically saying, “Hey, I would like to mess up,” just subconsciously. So as a result, most artists will stall, take their time, be an hour late, be two hours late, not show up at all, hijack their career in the name of fear. And as always, once you do it, then it’s, like, that’s all it was? No big deal. But I’m used to it, because I’ve been doing this for a couple of decades. Oftentimes, I’ll pull an artist to the side and just be, like, “OK, I want you to listen to my voice. I want you to inhale. Exhale.” I do that a lot to them, especially the new artists that are nervous and scared.

Ann Marie Baldonado and Anna Bauman produced and edited this interview for broadcast. Bridget Bentz, Molly Seavy-Nesper and Beth Novey adapted it for the web.

Angie Martin was the first client to arrive on Sunday morning at Pasadena City College, where a group of hairstylists and barbers were providing free hair services for people affected by the Eaton fire. After fleeing her Altadena home on the evening of Jan. 7, getting her hair done wasn’t top of mind, but then she learned about the two-day “Dena Strong” hair event on the news.

“I started thinking, ‘Oh, my God. How wonderful. How wonderful to be blessed to get my hair done,’” said Martin, 60, who got her hair washed and blow-dried, dyed black and braided down in a protective style so she can wear wigs.

Like many residents of Altadena, a historically Black neighborhood that was decimated by the Eaton fire, Martin expected to return home on Jan. 8. Instead, all she has left from her now-scorched apartment unit is a folder of important documents. She is temporarily living in an Airbnb unit provided by 211 LA, an organization partnering with Airbnb.org on the effort, and before Sunday, her hair was “a mess.”

For Ja’Von Paige, a hairstylist born and raised in Altadena, that was a recurring theme when talking to members of her own family who were affected by the firestorm: No one’s hair was done.

So, she decided that’s how she would give back to her community. “Who feels right if their hair isn’t done?” said Paige, 33.

Paige connected with Tara Brooks, another stylist who specializes in braiding, and Darshell Hannah, a celebrity hairstylist and president of the community service organization Charlee’s Angels, to host the event. Nearly 250 people, including first responders, attended the event, which received donations from several businesses including Beyoncé‘s Cécred and Wolfgang Puck.

On Sunday, 44 booths inside of the college’s cosmetology building were filled. Kirk Franklin, a popular Black gospel artist, was blasting from the speakers and laughter filled the room as those affected by the fires received hairstyles ranging from box braids to lineups and retwists. In addition to free hair services, student and alumni volunteers from the college’s cosmetology department offered free nail and facial services.

“All of us are struggling, and one thing about our hair is it’s going to take some time, and that’s one thing I don’t have, time and capacity,” said Jada Tarvin-Abu-Bekr, 24, a social worker who was receiving braids.

The energy in the room was not what one might expect from people who just lost everything. (“I’m having more fun doing it for free than when I normally get paid!” said Davon Parker, 33, a stylist who traveled from San Bernardino to staff the event.) But stylists and clients alike shared that community-organized support like the Dena Strong hair event left them feeling blessed and rejuvenated in spite of the tragedy.

“It’s been a long week, right?” Jonathan Gonzalez said. “So being able to get a cut before I go back into work, get a facial, see people that have experienced what I’ve experienced is really everything for me.”

“In a time of crisis, it’s really easy to focus only on the basic needs, things like food and shelter, but an aspect of emotional recovery is just as vital,” said Nicole Dezrea Jenkins, a visiting assistant professor of sociology at Harvard University. “The salon is offering a unique kind of support. It is restoring confidence and joy for people who have experienced so much.”

Jonathan Gonzalez, 33, was getting a haircut when he spoke to The Times. On Jan. 7, he had been working on the Palisades fire as an engineer with the L.A. County Public Works. By the next day, he’d lost 11 properties and an aunt to the Eaton fire.

“It’s been a long week, right? So being able to get a cut before I go back into work, get a facial, see people that have experienced what I’ve experienced is really everything for me,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to kind of get my mind off everything.”

Kamerin Harrell, who lost her house in the Eaton fire, kisses her daughter, Kassidy, as she waits to have her hair styled.

As the second-oldest sibling and eldest brother, Ifeanyi Ezieme, 27, said he has been very action-oriented in helping his family recuperate in the aftermath of his home burning.

“This is the first day since everything that I’m like, ‘All right, let me take care of myself for real,’” he said.

After both of her parents’ Altadena homes were destroyed in the Eaton fire and multiple other family members were displaced, salon owner Jazmyn Hobdy was searching for ways she could help affected Angelenos like herself. Then one of her former classmates reached out to her about hosting a free hair event at her Glendale salon in collaboration with Cécred.

Hairstylists and barbers from across L.A. are offering free hair services and products to victims of the wildfires.

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“Right now, working is actually the one thing that feels normal,” said Hobdy, 32, whose family has lived in Altadena since the 1970s. Her parents are currently staying with her at her home in the Valley. “It’s the one thing that is actually bringing me peace. I really just love doing hair, and I feel like [the event] just made sense.”

Roughly 35 people attended the Monday event at Extended Beauty Bar, where Hobdy and her team of stylists did an array of services, including wash and blow-drys, haircuts and trims, silk presses and hair extensions. Greeters warmly welcomed clients as they arrived for their appointments. Feel-good music played over the speakers, while staff passed out drinks (mimosas, coffee, tea and water) and pastries donated by Porto’s Bakery & Cafe, and each guest received a goodie bag filled with hair-care products.

“It’s not just that their house burned down,” said Hobdy. “There’s so many things to do right now. People are overwhelmed with what to do with all this information. Everyone is so thankful, but it’s hard to even sit and read stuff. Like what do you do next? So I wanted to just bring people out of their reality and kind of just give them that ‘me time.’” She plans to host another free hair event in February and March.

For Kya Bilal, a celebrity hairstylist whose family home was also destroyed in the Eaton fire, doing other people’s hair during their time of need felt therapeutic.

“I just honestly feel like so many people have been blessing me that there was a point where I’m like, ‘I can’t just sit around and be sad.’ I felt compelled to do something more,” said Bilal, who also works at Extended Beauty Bar. She fled Altadena — where she’d lived since she was a teenager — with her mother, 3-year-old daughter, stepfather, brother and two pets to Inglewood.

“I can’t really give much right now but my creativity,” she said, adding that she cried several times during the event as she connected with other victims, some of whom she knew. “With your hair, when you look good, you feel good, so I’ve been doing that for myself. I’ve been getting up, doing my makeup and curling my hair, and I know how it’s helping me to get through, so I just felt like it would help other women.”

Although some hair events were one-offs, other hair salons are offering services for an extended amount of time for fire victims. For example, BraidHouse, a beauty supply and braiding salon in North Hollywood, has been giving out complimentary wigs and doing free protective hairstyling such as box braids. BraidHouse is also offering displaced hair braiders a free space — there’s typically a fee for stylists — to do hair at the salon.

Owner Brittney Ogike said these complimentary services will continue as long as there is a need. People can make ongoing appointments via direct message on Instagram.

Black barbershops and hair salons have always been more than a place to simply get your hair done. However, their significance during times of tragedy is increased in a tight-knit community like Altadena.

For Eugene Leo Draine Mahmoud, 45, the Dena Strong event provided a respite from a week of grueling conversations with his insurance agency and FEMA — the latter of which was simultaneously operating a disaster relief fund in the PCC parking lot. The event was also an exercise in learning how to receive care.

“There’s a difference between the energy across the street and in here,” said Mahmoud, who attended the event with his wife and two kids. “There’s a recognition that things take time, but there’s a different conversation in here about people’s lives.”

This story is part of the My Unsung Hero series, from the Hidden Brain team. It features stories of people whose kindness left a lasting impression on someone else.

In 2004, when Claire Burnside Och was in college, she waited tables at a high-end restaurant.

One night, she had a group of 12, and a man at the table ordered two bottles of expensive wine. Burnside Och dreaded opening wine, because she had a history of doing it wrong.

When she began to open the bottle, she looked down and realized she had broken the cork — half was now stuck in her corkscrew, and the other half was stuck in the bottle.

“And my eyes are just saucers. I’m terrified,” she remembered.

But instead of acting annoyed, the man handled her mistake with decorum.

“He just kind of leans over and places his hands on the bottle, and looks at me and says, ‘I got it.’”

He took the wine, turned away from the table so no one else could see, and tried to pull out the cork. But by then, all he could do was push the rest of it into the bottle.

“So now there’s a half a cork floating in this beautiful bottle of wine,” Burnside Och said.

She considered all the scenarios that might unfold; none of them ended well.

“He’s going to want it replaced. He’s going to talk to my manager. It’s going to come out of my check,” she remembered thinking. “There’s no way he’s going to drink this.”

Instead, the man poured himself a glass of wine, speckled with tiny bits of cork, and proceeded to drink it. Then he continued to put her mind at ease.

“He leaned over and he said, ‘Don’t worry, it happens,’” she recalled.  ”And he turned to his guests and he started pouring them wine, and everything was fine.”

Claire Burnside Och (right) with her daughters.

Claire Burnside Och

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Claire Burnside Och

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Today, Burnside Och often hears the man’s voice in her own as she responds to someone else’s fumbles. When her two young daughters break something by accident, or a server spills something on her clothes, she lets them know that it’s just a mistake; they don’t need to worry.

“‘It happens. I got it,’” she tells them.

“It’s amazing how disarming those words are, and how they can completely redirect a situation from one ending to another,” she said.

“And if I could talk to that man again, I would say, ‘I heard you, and you’re aces. Thank you.’”

My Unsung Hero is also a podcast — new episodes are released every Tuesday. To share the story of your unsung hero with the Hidden Brain team, record a voice memo on your phone and send it to myunsunghero@hiddenbrain.org.