King Princess (aka Mikaela Straus) headlined her hometown’s famous venue, Radio City Music Hall, on October 3. To celebrate the occasion, Straus brought out another prominent NYC musician as a surprise special guest: The Strokes’ lead singer Julian Casablancas.
“We’re in New York, huh? We’re in my hometown,” Straus teased during the concert. “So maybe it’s only fitting that we play a song by the Strokes.”
“I mean, I don’t know. I don’t know,” she continued, hinting at the surprise guest. “I don’t know who’s gonna come out here, but… Julian called in sick!”
Thankfully, Casablancas wasn’t sick, and shortly appeared. In a video uploaded to YouTube, the crowd erupted in cheers and screamed “please,” right before the two performed a duet of The Strokes song “You Only Live Once.”
In the days following Straus’ show at Radio City, she is continuing her North American tour in support of her recent album, Hold On Baby. Originally scheduled for earlier this year, Straus rescheduled the performance dates following the loss of her grandmother.
“The amount of love I have for this woman, there was no decision to be made — I had to go to upstate NY and be with her during her final time on this earth,” she shared in a statement, according to NME. “That decision, coupled with other unforeseen challenges across the touring landscape, has ultimately forced me to move Leg 1 of the Hold On Baby Tour. I am so sorry for any inconvenience this has caused for anyone.”
Straus’ tour now runs until November, with a complete list of remaining dates available here.
Watch the video of King Princess and Casablancas performing “You Only Live Once” above.
