Billie Eilish, Anderson .Paak and Jon Batiste are among the stars who will make their way to Sesame Street for the beloved children program’s 52nd season. The show announced this week that the series — which will return to HBO Max on Nov. 11 — will also welcome Kacey Musgraves, astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison, tennis star Naomi Osaka and actress Keke Palmer.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the show was forced to shoot some episodes on location outside of its beloved soundstage, with some episodes taking pint-sized viewers to outdoor locations across New York.
“Creating this season of Sesame Street during the pandemic has been an enormous undertaking,” said Ben Lehmann, Sesame Workshop’s Senior Vice President & Head of Live Action and Sesame Street Executive Producer in a statement. “Just as our characters use playful problem-solving in the face of challenges, we, too, took a creative approach, finding innovative solutions while keeping our cast and crew safe. We’re proud of what we’ve been able to produce and are grateful to our partners at WarnerMedia and PBS for their continued support of Sesame Street.”
New episodes will drop every Thursday, with 35 shows slated for the upcoming season, which will also stream on PBS Kids in fall 2022. USA Today reported that Eilish will chop it up with The Count, while rapper/drummer .Paak will sing a song during an episode dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr. Tennis star Osaka will remind viewers about the importance of sunscreen and Gorman will work with Elmo to write an original poem.
Check out the roster of guests and their appearance dates below.
Jon Batiste (Nov. 18)
Kacey Musgraves (Dec. 2)
Naomi Osaka (Jan. 6)
Anderson .Paak (Jan. 13)
Dr. Mae Jemison (Jan. 27)
Amanda Gorman (March 24)
Keke Palmer (April 21)
Billie Eilish (June 16)
