ABC pulled out the big guns for Greatest Hits‘ live (!) two-hour (!!) season finale, beginning with a tribute to one of the greatest voices of all-time.
Scroll down to watch all of the evening’s performances, save for a few that weren’t blessed to us by Twitter:
* Ariana Grande kicked off Thursday’s broadcast with a high-energy performance of two Whitney Houston classics, “How Will I Know?” (1985) and “Queen of the Night” (1993):
* Next, American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert renewed the audience’s “Faith” in George Michael’s 1987 pop hit:
* Five members of New Edition followed this up by dusting off their dancing shoes for a medley of the group’s greatest hits:
* Co-host Kelsea Ballerini then joined Sheryl Crow for a duet of her 1994 jam “All I Wanna Do”:
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* Next, En Vogue reminded the audience that — as far as the group’s collective lovin’ is concerned — we’re “Never Gonna Get It.” (Video will be added when it becomes available.)
* The second half of the finale began with an emotional performance of “My Heart Will Go On,” which Celine Dion dedicated to her late husband:
* This was followed by a well-intended Run-D.M.C. tribute, courtesy of Flo Rida:
* Changing the pace up a bit, Richard Marx took the stage next, performing his 1987 hit “Don’t Mean Nothing”:
* The audience was then pulled “Down Under,” courtesy of Men at Work frontman Colin Hay:
* And John Legend was on hand for a dual performance of Lauryn Hill’s “That Thing” and “Ex-Factor.” (Video will be added when it becomes available.)
* The finale’s penultimate performance was an unexpected duet of “All Star” with Smashmouth and… country star Hunter Hayes?
* Dion aside, I would argue that Greatest Hits saved its biggest hit for last. Ladies and gentlemen, Nelly’s “Hot in Herre”:
Which Greatest Hits finale performance was your favorite? Drop your pick(s) in a comment below.
