Top 10 Comeback Music Performances

MsMojo

Nice to have them back! Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the live performances that ended a singer’s hiatus, revived their fame, or came after a period of uncertainty in their career.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the live performances that

00:11ended a singer's hiatus, revived their fame, or came after a period of uncertainty in their

00:17career.

00:26Number 10. Jonas Brothers, The Late Late Show with James Corden. Millions of millennials

00:36completely freaked out when Nick, Joe, and Kevin Jonas announced they were getting the

00:40band back together. Late Late Show host James Corden got in on the action by having the

00:45brothers on his show for nearly a whole week to commemorate the occasion. When they debuted

00:50their first single together in six years, the audience was full of screaming fans. The

01:03performance featured some wicked stagecraft. With moving platforms and an entire troupe

01:07of backup dancers, the whole thing looked more like a full-scale awards show than a

01:11late night set.

01:19Number 9. Mariah Carey, Good Morning America. The stakes were high for the emancipation

01:32of Mimi. Mariah Carey's last studio album didn't get the best reviews, and she had barely

01:37recovered from the box office disaster of Glitter.

01:45The auspicious start of the album's American release was a short concert on Good Morning

01:52America. As soon as she came out in that fur coat and sparkling dress, it was clear the

01:57queen was back and the mic was on. She captivated the adoring Times Square crowd for 20 magical

02:03minutes. With each song, you could literally see her gaining in power and confidence.

02:14Number 8. Gloria Estefan, 18th Annual American Music Awards. There was a possibility that

02:22Gloria Estefan would never perform again. The Cuban-American singer was involved in

02:27a devastating tour bus accident in 1990, which fractured her spine.

02:44She took nearly a year to heal. When she did return, the entire audience at the 1991 American

02:52Music Awards stood and applauded before she even began her song. Visibly emotional at

02:57the response, she tore through her newest single, Coming Out of the Dark. Inspired by

03:08something her husband said to her in the wake of the accident, it's a ballad about emotional

03:12strength and finding strength in love that spoke to the magnitude of the moment. Estefan

03:17wasn't just back, she was better than ever.

03:26Number 7. Barbara Streisand, One Voice. Despite putting out nearly 40 albums over the past

03:3460 years and having one of the best voices in music, Barbara Streisand concerts are famously

03:44scarce. She doesn't tour albums the way many artists do, so when she announced she was

03:52doing a one-time-only concert in 1986 for a host of her favorite charities, it became

04:08an event unto itself. The audience was a who's who of Hollywood royalty, even music fans

04:21like Bette Midler and Whitney Houston expressed their excitement at seeing Streisand sing

04:25live for the very first time. The concert, filmed on Streisand's ranch, itself is perfection

04:31from start to finish.

04:39Number 6. Joni Mitchell, Joni Mitchell at Newport. The master singer-songwriter's recovery

04:45is one of music's most unlikely comebacks. Joni Mitchell's career as a performer was

04:49already slowing down when she experienced a damaging brain aneurysm in 2015. Seven years

04:54later, Mitchell made a triumphant return to the stage at the legendary Newport Folk Festival.

05:06She was not alone. She was supported on all sides by several other famous singers and

05:11admirers, including Brandi Carlile, Wynonna Judd, and Marcus Mumford.

05:20Even as she performed most of the set from the comfort of an ornate easy chair, she still

05:24had an enormous stage presence. It was a concert as much as it was a celebration of her career.

05:40Number 5. Destiny's Child, Super Bowl XLVII

05:49After they marked their last performance in 2006, the trio made up of Beyonce, Kelly Rowland,

05:56and Michelle Williams went their separate ways. It would take seven years for them to

06:00reunite, and they couldn't have picked a better occasion. When she was chosen to headline

06:04the 2013 Super Bowl halftime show, it was rumored that Beyonce's husband Jay-Z would

06:09be the special guest. Instead, halfway through the show, her former

06:19bandmates were rocketed out of the stage to join her for a medley of their hits. Destiny's

06:24Child set the stage on fire that night, and yes, we do mean that literally.

06:38Number 4. Fleetwood Mac, Fleetwood Mac, The Dance

06:46McFleetwood's band has gone through many lineups over the years. Its most iconic and

06:53successful one featured Lindsey Buckingham, Christine McVie, John McVie, and Stevie Nicks,

06:58whose behind-the-scenes tension inspired some of their best songs.

07:09Having broken up in 1987, the Rumors-era lineup came back together briefly for the 1993 Clinton

07:15inauguration. But we'd have to wait until 1997 for a full reunion. The Dance is a night

07:26of great songs, nostalgia, and years of pent-up emotions playing out on stage. The concert

07:32filmed at Warner Bros. Studios ended in explosive fashion with the full USC Trojan marching

07:37band on stage.

07:45Number 3. Tina Turner, 27th Annual Grammy Awards

07:49This year she's made one of the biggest comebacks in show business history. I mean, it's incredible.

07:55She's been described, and you'll like this, she's been described as the woman God made

07:59to show other women how to dance in high-heeled shoes.

08:04After surviving a disastrous and agonizing marriage, Tina Turner went from performing

08:08in arenas and packed theaters to hotel lounges and small clubs. What's Love Got to Do With

08:13It from the Private Dancer album was her second chance. She cleaned up at the Grammys, tying

08:24with Prince for most awards of the night. The barn-burning performance of her new signature

08:28hit became the perfect climax of her unlikely comeback story. It wasn't the first time she'd

08:33performed it on TV, but it represented the reality that the irrepressible queen of rock

08:38and roll was back.

08:46Number 2. Céline Dion, 33rd Olympic Summer Games

08:50I miss it so much. The people. I miss them. Although she told CBC's Adrienne Arsenault,

09:00expect a comeback.

09:01Over the past few years, we've watched as the world-renowned Canadian singer has opened

09:05up about her diagnosis of stiff person syndrome. Céline Dion's battle with the neurological

09:10disorder left people with doubts that she would ever perform again, despite her own

09:14promise to return no matter what it took.

09:23She keeps her promises. She was the surprise guest at the end of the 2024 Paris Olympics

09:29opening ceremony. From the Eiffel Tower, Dion powered through the classic French love song

09:34Hymne à l'amour. Even if you had no idea what she'd been through, it was a stunning

09:38performance. And if you did know, it seemed like a miracle.

09:50Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

09:54Rihanna, Super Bowl LV. We're still waiting on that album, but we can't deny how epic

10:00this halftime show was.

10:08Tracy Chapman, 66th Annual Grammy Awards. Luke Holmes' cover of Fast Car and their

10:13duet brought her back to the Grammys.

10:20Britney Spears, Bambi Verlaine 2008. After a very difficult year, Spears returned to

10:26live performance with her new single.

10:35Usher, Super Bowl LV. One of the best showmen in music proved he still has it.

10:56Elvis Presley, Elvis. For the better part of the 1960s, the king of rock and roll had

11:17all but abandoned touring for a successful career in the movies. Seeing Elvis Presley

11:21on screen was one thing, but fans were missing the raw power of his live performances.

11:33This hour-long concert for TV was a return to his adoring public as much as it was a

11:37chance to reintroduce himself to a new generation of listeners, more than ten years removed

11:42from his big break.

11:51The 1968 special was an instant hit when it premiered on NBC. It drew a massive audience,

11:57with nearly half of all TV watchers tuning in that night. The special single-handedly

12:01relaunched his career in music.

12:11Which of these comebacks was most iconic to you? Sound off in the comments.

12:22Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo. And be sure

12:27to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.

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