Lester Holt Playing Bass for Kelly Clarkson Is One of His Coolest On-Air Moments
Lester Holt gives his final Nightly News broadcast on May 30 and is headed to Dateline full-time.
Over two decades ago, Lester Holt joined the NBC team and has gone on to build one iconic career. As the anchor of NBC Nightly News, he’s interviewed multiple sitting presidents, the pope, and more influential figures. On Dateline, he’s led in-depth investigations with the newsmagazine's team of correspondents. For many years, he was the anchor of Weekend TODAY and has also covered the Olympics, among countless other breaking news events.
As May 30, 2025 marks Holt’s last day on NBC Nightly News, the award-winning journalist is moving to Dateline full-time. “Long-form is something I really wanted to get my teeth into, it’s a different set of news muscles. The time just seemed to be right,” Holt shared on TODAY about his career update, adding that he’s also looking forward to spending more time with his grandchildren.
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Through the years, Holt has been all over the NBC universe and has gifted us with so many memorable moments. Read on to look back at some of them.
When Lester Holt was named principal anchor of Dateline in 2011
In 2011, Holt was named the principal anchor of Dateline, marking yet another pivotal moment in his accomplished career.
“I’m really excited to be a permanent part of the show,” he said at the time. “I’ve been reporting for Dateline since 2005 and I’ve always liked being able to tell stories in a longer format, whether it’s racing to put together a special hour on a breaking news story or working for months on an in-depth investigation.”
Fast-forward 14 years later, and Holt has now moved full-time as Dateline’s anchor. Holt said in a statement in 2025, “I will be expanding my footprint on the broadcast and crafting Dateline hours on subjects I care deeply about.”
When Lester Holt played the blues for Kelly Clarkson
In 2020, Holt made a virtual appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show — with his adorable labradoodle Lucy sitting on his lap — when Kelly Clarkson noticed his upright bass in the background.
“Can I convince you to play just a little something maybe?” asked Clarkson, who then lit up with excitement when Holt quickly pulled out his electric bass guitar and began to play a bluesy number. Toe-tapping to the beat as he strummed, Holt hilariously bounced his camera out of the frame.
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When Lester Holt became an NBC Page for a day
In honor of the NBCUniversal Page Program’s 80th anniversary in 2013, Holt and former Weekend TODAY co-anchor Erica Hill tried out the job for a day. Holt had even applied for the competitive program back in the ‘70s but didn’t make the cut.
“Best revenge, I’m an anchorman at NBC News,” Holt recalled with a smile in the segment that had the broadcasters leading a tour and testing their knowledge on NBC’s trivia.
When Lester Holt met Pope Leo XIV
In May 2025, Holt sat down with Pope Leo XIV, the newly named head of the Catholic Church following the death of Pope Francis. Holt shared on NBC Nightly News that he had a “brief” but “meaningful” interaction with the new pope in the Vatican.
“He shook my hand,” Holt recalled. “We talked a little about the outpouring that he’s received back home, back in the United States. And I asked him what that says about the role of an American pope and he said, ‘You tell me.’"
Holt also told Savannah Guthrie on TODAY that he considers this moment a “highlight” of his career.
When Lester Holt was “forced” to be friends with Seth Meyers
Back in 2014, Holt appeared in a hilarious segment on Late Night with Seth Meyers to see what happens when a “late night talk show host hangs out with a serious journalist in a piece we’re calling ‘Forced Friendship with Seth & Lester.’”
“You lost or something?” Holt asks Seth Meyers at the beginning of the sketch after pretending to be on a call with President Obama. The two then continue to swap stories about just how different their jobs are, playfully feud about their lunch orders, and ride a carousel together at Bryant Park. “This just in!” Holt says on top of a carousel horse. “I am currently filled with joy.”
When Lester Holt’s dog Lucy showed off her tricks on TODAY
Not only is Holt’s Australian labradoodle named after the Lucille Ball, Lucy's also one smart pup. In 2019, the NBC news anchor brought Lucy on TODAY for a segment called “My Pet Tale” and gushed about her sweet personality, describing her as a “party girl” who loves a basic yellow tennis ball.
During the segment, Holt showed off how Lucy can play catch, hug, and even fist bump. “She constantly makes us laugh,” he said. “She’s a little performer."
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When Lester Holt shared his scrapbook of newspaper clippings on NBC Nightly News
In 1969, Holt was just 10 years old, living on an Air Force base with his family in Alaska. It was a place where he said he could “look up a lot because you could see the Northern Lights during the winter.” Around that time, he had also created a scrapbook of newspaper clippings about NASA, the space program, and news about Apollo 11, an event he watched “unfold” with his family gathered around the TV.
“I was always enamored by all things aviation,” he said on NBC Nightly News in 2019, adding that he realized as a kid that Apollo 11 was a historic moment and he wanted to record it. “I don’t know if consciously or subconsciously, I thought creating a journal, creating a scrapbook that someday I would dig it out and share it with people, share it with my family. And here it is.”
