Just before Christmas once a year, mega-producer Jack Antonoff stages his big benefit concert, the Ally Coalition Talent Show, and tons of stars come out. Antonoff and his sister, the fashion designer Rachel, founded the Ally Coalition, which raises money for LGBTQ+ young people who are unhoused or otherwise at risk. Antonoff never reveals the Talent Show’s lineup ahead of time, but he always brings out big names. Last year, for instance, featured Sabrina Carpenter and Turnstile’s Brendan Yates, among tons of others. This year’s show came to NYU’s Skirball Center For The Performing Arts on Monday night, and the guests included Florence + The Machine’s Florence Welch, Paramore’s Hayley Williams, and Phish’s Trey Anastasio.
Trey Anastasio made his second Talent Show appearance last night. Rachel Zegler, Claud, Andrew Dost, and comedians Mike Birbiglia and Cris Laker were returning guests from last year. Rachel Antonoff and her and Jack’s father Rick have usually been onstage at these things, but they were both sick last night, so they couldn’t make it. The 2025 show was Florence Welch’s first appearance at one of them; Antonoff co-produced her 2022 album Dance Fever. Hayley Williams had never done one of the New York Talent Shows, but she took part in Antonoff’s TAC Talent Show at the Newport Folk Festival, and she also performed with Bleachers at a Rolling Stone event in New York earlier this year.
Our own Scott Lapatine was in the house for last night’s show, and he says that the evening’s most memorable moment was Bleachers, Florence Welch, Hayley Williams, and Trey Anastasio all getting together to cover Judee Sill’s 1971 folk classic “Lopin’ Along Through The Cosmos.” Clairo, a Talent Show alum, covered that same song at a benefit for Gaza and Sudan last year, and Fleet Foxes’ Robin Pecknold also happened to cover it at Largo in Los Angeles last night. (It wasn’t Pecknold’s first time performing it.) More than half a century after its release, “Lopin’ Along” is apparently becoming a standard.
After that Judee Sill cover, Florence Welch stuck around to perform her own songs “Dog Days Are Over” and “Free,” with Bleachers and fellow performers Rachel Zegler, Claud, Samia, and Annie DiRusso backing her up.
Earlier in the evening, Bleachers backed up Rainey Qualley, Jack Antonoff’s sister-in-law, on “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.”
Rachel Zegler, star of stage and screen, covered Joni Mitchell’s “Rlver” with Bleachers behind her. Unsurprisingly, she sang the shit out of it.
Trey Anastasio joined Bleachers on their song “Goodmorning,” as well as a cover of Jonathan Richman’s not-exactly-seasonal “That Summer Feeling.” Anastasio sang lead on the Richman cover, with Claud, Samia, Annie DiRusso, and Hank Heaven joining in.
After Anastasio’s appearance, Hayley Williams joined Bleachers to perform her songs “Good Ol’ Days” and “Love Me Different.” Williams, it’s worth noting, is donating one dollar from every ticket sale on her 2026 tour to the Ally Coalition.
The night ended with Williams joining Bleachers for “Merry Christmas, Please Don’t Call,” which has become the traditional closing number for the Ally Coalition Talent Show.
Shout out to one IronChefWong for putting basically the entire show on YouTube.
