It’s day 4 of our latest heatwave and it takes a lot of energy to stay cool and just laugh. There’s not much to laugh about at the moment; yet in these times of unrest, there’s always moments for humor, especially if it’s around music and tech.

I awoke this morning to the link about the Panama Playlists, the reveal of various celebrities listening habits. Skimming the article in bed, I laughed aloud decaffeinated at the thought of Sam Altman shazaming “Get Ur Freak On.” I thought of various situational possibilities to myself, then went on with my day.

Then tonight I thought about it again and decided it would make a very funny cold SNL open. But instead of writing about it, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to try out a creative task to his company’s Chat GPT 5. So I prompted it.

Here’s what it wrote.

INT. TECH HEARING ROOM – DAY

(A mock congressional hearing. A long table with tech CEOs. The chairperson, a senator, adjusts glasses dramatically. Sam Altman (cast member) sits nervously, clutching an iPhone.)

SENATOR:

Mr. Altman, you’re the CEO of the company that makes the smartest AI in the world. But we’ve learned… you had to use Shazam to identify Missy Elliott’s “Get Ur Freak On.” Care to explain?

ALTMAN (stammering):

In my defense, Senator… the beat is… very tricky.

SENATOR:

Tricky? It’s the most famous beat in hip-hop history. Even my grandkids know it.

OTHER TECH CEO (leaning in):

I mean, c’mon Sam, next you’ll tell us you thought OutKast was a clothing brand.

(AUDIENCE laughs.)

ALTMAN:

Look—AI can write symphonies, solve math proofs… but no machine, no human… could possibly decode what Missy says after “Hollaaa!”

STAFFER (off to the side, whispers into mic):

It’s “Don’t I look like a Halle Berry poster.”

SENATOR:

Exactly. Even a staffer knows that! And you, sir, had to outsource it to Shazam.

ALTMAN (defensive):

Well, Shazam is also… a kind of AI? So technically, I innovated.

SENATOR:

You innovated your way into embarrassing every millennial alive.

REPORTER (shouting from gallery):

Mr. Altman! Is it true you also asked ChatGPT who “Destiny’s Child” was?

ALTMAN:

No comment!

(Suddenly, music blares—Missy Elliott’s “Get Ur Freak On.” The whole hearing room awkwardly nods to the beat. One senator is vibing way too hard.)

SENATOR (yelling over music):

You know what, forget it—this track is undeniable.

(The music cuts suddenly. Everyone freezes mid-dance.)

SENATOR (turns to camera, dead serious):

Live from New York… it’s Saturday Night!

Part 2

Besides the bad, shall I say embarrassing Halle Berry joke, it wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever read written in a second. Yes it took a second for the AI to write this and yes it only took me about a second to think up this idea, but it would have taken me at least 10 minutes to write the skit.

I laughed out loud. My husband hated it.

“Garbage in, garbage out,” as I like to say. But that OutKast joke was funny.