Janelle Monáe rocks the house with killer Oscars opening number

Musician Janelle Monáe was joined on stage with Billy Porter to open the 92nd annual Oscars. It was a fabulous performance to kick the night off.

Forget about having a hostless Oscars. The Academy wasn’t going to let that get in the way by starting with a strong open on Sunday night with a surprise performance by Janelle Monáe. The artist kicked off the night with her own rendition of the Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood theme, coming out to a set that looks exactly like the beloved TV show.

Then, the singer kicked it into high-gear with a Broadway musical-like number that incorporated dancers dressed as characters from the year’s hottest movies. You can peep dancers behind her dressed as the cast of Midsommar, Dolemite is My Name and even Jojo Rabbit.

Things ramped up even more when awards show phenom Billy Porter came on stage to sing along with Monáe. Of course, both were dressed absolutely fabulous, but Porter’s shiny outfit was one for the books (as always).

And, it wouldn’t be a big musical number without Monáe heading into the crowd to serenade the other celebrities. Monáe breezed past Tom Hanks and gave him a hat, and in the aisle, she gave the mic to Captain Marvel actress Brie Larson to do her own little freestyle riff. It goes without saying that this really is one of the better Oscars opening numbers in a while, and it definitely makes up for the hostless Oscars. (At least just a little bit!)

You can see the Oscars opening number in the video down below.

Keep up with FanSided Entertainment as we follow along with the 92nd annual Academy Awards. Follow the Oscars category on our site for more Oscars news, or follow our updated winner’s post to see all the winners from Sunday night.