Cynthia Erivo holding her hands to her chest while wearing a feathery coatCredit: Cover Images
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Sarah Polonsky
Published 9 minutes ago
Senior Music Editor at Screen Rant, Sarah's love of sound and story drive the beat. A globetrotting brand whisperer and award-winning journalist, she’s built cross-cultural narratives around the world—but music has always been her true north. She launched DJ Mag North America, successfully introducing the iconic UK brand to the U.S. market. Previously, she carved a space for EDM inside the pages of VIBE, blending electronic and hip-hop culture long before it was trendy.
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The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has always been America’s unofficial kickoff to the holiday season, but the 2025 edition might be the most musically stacked lineup in years. With Cynthia Erivo opening the show in full Broadway-belt mode, Busta Rhymes bringing New York rap icon energy, Ciara returning with that effortless pop-R&B charisma, and Lainey Wilson holding down country’s unstoppable mainstream moment, this year’s parade is a genuine genre sampler. Add in three Broadway casts performing live out in the cold and a wave of youth-culture icons like Labubu and KPop Demon Hunters floating above Manhattan, and the parade is suddenly more than a tradition; it's a snapshot of what American entertainment looks like in 2025.
Whether you’re watching from your couch or catching the rebroadcast after the turkey coma sets in, here’s everything worth paying attention to: the can’t-miss musical performances, the viral-bait float moments, and exactly how to watch every minute live.
The Lineup Is Stacked! Here Are The Musical Performances Worth Your Time:
Cynthia Erivo: Big vocals, prestige energy, and the opening slot ensures her performance becomes the parade’s biggest cultural moment. Expect clips everywhere.
Ciara: One of the most consistently great live performers in the parade’s history. She’ll deliver something sleek, athletic, and extremely TikTok-friendly.
Busta Rhymes: A true NYC celebration. His stage presence is always massive, and his live ability will cut through the cold better than anyone.
Lainey Wilson: Country’s biggest star right now. She brings a warm, charismatic glow to a parade that increasingly blends genres.
Broadway casts: Buena Vista Social Club, Just In Time, Ragtime: These will be fan favorites, especially for viewers who treat the parade as their yearly musical-theater showcase.
The Opening Moments Will Be Huge And Extremely Online
Cynthia Erivo opening the parade is the closest thing to a theatrical mic drop you could ask for on Thanksgiving morning. Her voice is so powerful it practically rattles the buildings on 34th Street, and NBC clearly knows that making her the first performer guarantees a clip that will ricochet across social media before the floats even clear Columbus Circle. With Wicked hitting its cultural peak again, Erivo will be one of the most talked-about performers of the morning—a perfect storm of musical theater dominance meeting holiday spectacle.
Ciara brings another kind of nostalgia-meets-now energy. She always makes performing outdoors in 30-degree weather look like a Super Bowl warmup, and she’s one of the few pop stars who can flip a parade stage into a mini-stadium. If she pulls a medley, you might get “Level Up,” “1, 2 Step,” and something new—the exact recipe for the kind of parade clip TikTok latches onto for weeks.
Then there’s Busta Rhymes, who is emblematic of NYC itself. Expect speed-rap precision and big-jiggy-fly coat energy, a reminder that the parade still belongs to the city, even when half the floats are global fandom crossovers. It’s also rare to see an artist with that kind of breath control performing live in the cold, so even musically, the moment is worth watching.
Country, Broadway, And Big Float Moments Will Help Define This Year’s Parade
Lainey Wilson’s rise has been so meteoric that her parade debut feels overdue. She’s now the face of country music’s crossover into pop culture—TV, fashion, festivals—so sliding into the Thanksgiving Day lineup is basically a coronation. She’ll give the parade its “America’s soundtrack” moment, the kind mainstream viewers connect to immediately.
Broadway remains robust this year: the casts of Buena Vista Social Club, Just in Time, and Ragtime will all perform. Each is a different vibe—Cuban musical history, tap-influenced classic Broadway, and sweeping American storytelling—and that breadth is exactly why the parade keeps Broadway tethered to mainstream culture year after year. It’s a chance for millions to see shows they might never get to New York for, and a reminder that Broadway is still one of the city’s strongest cultural exports.
But perhaps the biggest energy will come not from traditional performers, but from the youth-culture side of the parade. Labubu—already one of the most viral and collectible toy characters in the world—returns with a PopMart float designed specifically to break the internet. Labubu fans treat these floats like K-pop fandoms treat comebacks: screenshots, edits, memes, the whole ecosystem. Meanwhile, KPop Demon Hunters continue their unstoppable breakout trajectory with the “Derpy Tiger” balloon, which is going to be one of the most photographed characters of the entire parade. Between the fandom’s hyper-organized online presence and the character’s built-in cuteness factor, this is another guaranteed social moment. The parade has increasingly leaned into global youth-culture icons, and 2025 is the most obvious example yet.
How To Watch Every Performance (Live Or After Dinner)
Macy's x Rookie Kids 'Runway On Broadway' Back To School Fashion ShowJanet Mayer/INSTARimages.com
The 2025 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade broadcasts live on 
NBC starting at 8:30 a.m. ET. That’s the only way to catch the opening block, including Cynthia Erivo’s performance, in real time.
If you’re streaming, 
Peacock Premiumcarries the full parade live, and—depending on your device—often offers extra camera angles that give closer views of floats, balloons, and street-level performances. Fubo and Sling also carry NBC in most markets.
If you miss the morning show because you’re drowning in mashed potatoes, the rebroadcast airs around 2 p.m. ET/PT, which has become the preferred watch time for people actually cooking Thanksgiving dinner (and for anyone who wants the performances without the 8:30 a.m. wakeup).
For those in New York, the parade runs its traditional route from the Upper West Side down to Herald Square, but the best in-person viewing for performers is still around the Bryant Park–Herald Square stretch.
2025 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade: Music Performance Lineup
Artist / Cast
Genre
What To Expect
Cynthia Erivo
Broadway / Vocal Powerhouse
The parade’s show-opening moment and almost guaranteed to become the morning’s most shared clip. Massive vocals, prestige energy, and a big Wicked-boosted spotlight.
Ciara
Pop / R&B
High-energy choreo, sleek staging, and a medley that will play straight into TikTok culture. One of the most reliable parade performers.
Busta Rhymes
Hip-Hop
A pure New York flex. Expect heavy stage presence, fast-paced delivery, and one of the day’s standout “real performance” moments.
Lainey Wilson
Country
America’s current country superstar giving the parade its down-home warmth. Expect charisma, crowd-friendly vocals, and a major crossover moment.
Buena Vista Social Club (Cast)
Broadway / Latin
Rich musicality, live instrumentation, and a Cuban-influenced performance that stands out visually and sonically.
Just In Time (Cast)
Broadway
Tap-heavy, classic Broadway energy—perfect for families and theater fans watching at home.
Ragtime (Cast)
Broadway
Sweeping, emotional staging that channels American musical tradition. Always a parade favorite for legacy-theater fans.
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