Ana Gasteyer recently shared a vivid recollection of one of the most unforgettable musical guests she encountered during her time on Saturday Night Live: Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Appearing on the Las Culturistas podcast on Wednesday, November 20, Gasteyer, who was part of the SNL cast from 1996 to 2002, described how the rapper left a significant impression when he performed as the musical guest in May 1998.
“Of course, he shut down the entire building,” Gasteyer, now 57, remarked. “You can count on one hand the number of times during my six years there when we were told, ‘This person’s in the building—everyone stay in your dressing rooms.’ That kind of thing is usually reserved for presidential candidates. But for P. Diddy? He had to have the whole set completely locked down.”
The actress painted a memorable picture of the Thursday rehearsal, where Combs was prepping his rendition of Come With Me, a track that heavily samples Led Zeppelin’s 1975 classic Kashmir. She shared how this intense atmosphere took a hilarious turn when fellow cast member Will Ferrell, encouraged by writers during a brainstorming session, decided to crash the rehearsal in character.
According to Gasteyer, Ferrell—also 57—donned the persona of “Ron,” a quirky character, and confidently marched into the restricted area. “I have footage from the control room showing Sean Combs rapping with the iconic ‘da-na-na, da-na-na, da-na-na’ from Kashmir playing in the background. And then there’s Ron, wandering around like he’s lost, completely in character,” she recounted.
She called the moment “legendary,” adding, “It was perfect irony. Here’s someone basking in their ‘Kashmir’ moment, and Ron just strolls in to disrupt it. Combs didn’t take it well—he was clearly uncomfortable—but it was such a satisfying way to poke at all that inflated sense of self-importance.”
Gasteyer couldn’t resist pointing out the absurdity of the situation. “What’s the big deal? Someone walks into the studio. So what? We work here too!”
Ferrell corroborated this story in a 2020 interview with Vulture, fondly recalling how quickly he leapt into action. “Someone said, ‘Ron should go up onstage,’ and before anyone could stop me, I was already sprinting out the door,” he said.
The story is a perfect encapsulation of SNL’s irreverent spirit, proving that no one—no matter how iconic—was immune to a bit of unexpected comedy.