5 musicians we’d love to see guest star on This Is Us

Music rests in the heart of This Is Us with Rebecca and Kate pursuing their passions for singing. During their dream chasing, we wouldn’t be mad at seeing these five musicians pop up in guest roles.

It’s becoming increasingly clear that music is the Pearson family business. Rebecca’s ambitions to sing inspire Kate to honor her own talent and aspirations. William’s past as a jazz musician festers an ill-fated interest in music for Randall. And as we have recently learned, Sterling K. Brown has his own set of powerful pipes. But what about some stunt casting on This Is Us?

As if it’s not enough that the This Is Us cast already boasts a gifted musician in Mandy Moore, the series has plenty of room to welcome some of pop music’s most dynamic multi-hyphenates for guest roles. Luckily, This Is Us doesn’t even need to lasso big name celebrities to raise their profile in the vein of Britney Spears and Katy Perry appearing on How I Met Your Mother. (Ironically, Mandy Moore also guest starred in an early episode of HIMYM.)

Going into Season 2, which will dive deeper into Kate’s singing career, real-life singers can drop in either as themselves or characters she meets on her path to taking the stage. We’re simply speculating and dream casting here, but the breakout hit shouldn’t count out the benefits of a decent pop crossover. These five hyper-talented musicians have the voice and the acting chops we’d love to see on This Is Us.

1. Miley Cyrus

The former Hannah Montana star might seem like an unconventional pick for a guest starring stint on This Is Us, but hear us out. Miley Cyrus recently starred in Woody Allen’s Amazon comedy series Crisis in Six Scenes and joined NBC’s smash-hit singing competition series The Voice as a coach. As a celebrity and a performer, her profile has never been higher after attaining icon status with her Bangerz-era antics and expression. What would make her an amazing This Is Us guest star?

Having toned down her abrasive 2013-2015 public image, Cyrus has once again revamped her music style, but this time she’s honoring her Southern upbringing. “Malibu,” the first single from her forthcoming album titled Younger Now, strips down the production to soft roots beach rock. Clearly, Cyrus’ new album will feature cuts perfect for This Is Us. Whether she appears as a tie-in to The Voice or she appears as a mentor Kate meets while pursuing music, we’d love to see — and hear! — Miley Cyrus visit the Pearsons.

2. John Legend

He’s a Golden Globe winner, a Grammy winner, and an Academy Award winner. He’s hit the top of the charts and sold out arenas. He’s written the love songs you know by heart and starred in the biggest movie-musical of 2016, almost-Best Picture winner La La Land. John Legend could very well be the next big singing competition judge on NBC’s The Voice or ABC’s American Idol revival, but we would prefer he brought his talents to This Is Us and served double duty as a musical guest.

It helps that Legend has appeared in a number of television series as himself, performing on such shows as Curb Your Enthusiasm, Las Vegas, and Royal Pains. Legend also appeared in the second season of Aziz Ansari’s Netflix comedy Master of None, proving that the singer-actor has TV on the brain. Few television dramas incorporate music into the narrative as organically as This Is Us, and it wouldn’t be too far fetched to catch Legend make a cameo as himself or a character similar to his in La La Land. We’d love to see John Legend give us all to This Is Us!

3. Kesha

What would make Kesha’s official comeback to the music scene complete? A guest starring turn on television’s No. 1 drama series. After taking pop music by storm in 2009 with a string of unbeatable Top 10 hits, beginning with her inescapable debut single “Tik Tok,” Kesha encountered personal struggles that blended into her professional career. However, with her latest hit single “Praying” and new album Rainbow, the singer is back and better than ever.

In the midst of Kesha’s extended break after 2012’s Warrior, she appeared in a 2015 episode of Jane the Virgin as a noisy musician neighbor. Well, fast forward to 2017, and we wouldn’t complain a bit to catch Kesha back in action on the small screen as a musician, except in a more honest portrayal. She has ditched the glitter-bomb party anthem persona and matured her sound for lasting appeal. As much as Kesha could kill a cameo as a character, we would love to watch her perform “Praying” during an especially tear-jerking This Is Us moment.

4. Alicia Keys

Who doesn’t love the girl on fire? Alicia Keys has become one of The Voice’s most beloved coaches, yes, but the singer has proven time and time again how evocative of different music eras she can be. While grabbing her own impressive roster of hits with a powerful voice, captivating lyrics, and an important perspective on the world, Alicia Keys has always incorporated imagery that can invoke nostalgia for the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s. And which show takes place in all three decades and more? This Is Us.

Keys isn’t just a Grammy-winning musician with mentoring skills to spare. She’s a through and through artist who can express herself in a variety of ways — as a poet, pianist, and actress. Back in 2007, Keys co-starred alongside Scarlett Johansson in The Nanny Diaries and has since co-starred in a number of titles, including Fox’s hip-hop drama Empire. Even if she were to drop by This Is Us and not perform, it would be entirely worth it, especially if she were to somehow share a scene with Ron Cephas Jones. Alicia Keys’ sound and style can transcend time, after all.

5. Adam Levine

Not to name another alum of the spinning red chairs on The Voice, but NBC seriously has that show stacked with amazing talents. (We’d have included Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Hudson, and Kelly Clarkson on the list, but we don’t want to be greedy, now do we?) Of course, Adam Levine gained fame as the frontman of the platinum-selling pop-rock band Maroon 5, scoring No. 1 hits like they’re going out of style. But he’s also made an impact as an actor.

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Levine made his acting debut in 2012’s American Horror Story: Asylum and followed up with a guest starring role in the 2013 music film Begin Again. Apart from making cameos as himself in series such as 30 Rock and Broad City, Levine hasn’t done much acting on the small screen. Bringing his talents to This Is Us could accomplish a lot in one fell swoop. He could promo The Voice, gift us with his voice, and add a character his belt. We’re not sure if This Is Us can handle another heartthrob, but we’re willing to take that risk.

Which A-list musicians would you love to see drop by This Is Us in a guest role? Sound off in the comments, and keep the conversation going on Twitter!