Saturday Night Live's Kate McKinnon has rocked an entertaining and hilarious impression of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for throughout the former Secretary of State's campaign. But after Republican candidate Donald Trump became the president-elect after Tuesday night's election, supporters who were with her are feeling frustrated and sad with the state of the nation. So instead of a parody-filled opening about Trump's America, SNL opened with Hillary Clinton singing Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" as a tribute to both the woman who could've shattered the glass ceiling and the legendary singer who recently passed this week.
Cohen died on Monday at age 82 and one of his most enduring songs is "Hallelujah." In a perfect combination of tributes, McKinnon dressed as Hillary belted out the entirity of the song while playing piano on stage. There were no jokes, no impressions, and no Trump mentions. McKinnon commanded the stage alone with the music and her amazing singing voice. It was simple, gorgeous, and appropriately somber as an ode to two legends: a musician with an epic career, and the most successful woman in politics as the first female presidential nominee for a major political party.
Once done with the song, McKinnon turns to the audience and says, "I'm not giving up, and neither should you." Cue the tears, seriously. It's not clear if McKinnon made the statement in character as Clinton or as herself, but it was a simple remark that brought a hopeful tear to my eye.
The tribute also seemed like a sad farewell to McKinnon's Clinton impression, which has had so many classic moments throughout the real candidate's presidential campaign. But not to worry, McKinnon's incredible impression of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg appeared on "Weekend Update" that I can only hope becomes a regular character.
But as for Clinton and Cohen, SNL gave them a beautiful send-off. Watch it in the video below.
Images: Dana Edelson/NBC; Giphy
