Hurray For The Riff Raff Delivers Showstopping ‘Snake Plant’ On ‘Kimmel’

Hurray for the Riff Raff appeared the musical guest on Thursday’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live The project of Alynda Segerra performed “Snake Plant (The Past Is Still Alive),” the quasi-title track from their excellent 2024 album The Past Is Still Alive.

The Past Is Still Alive was released on February 23, 2024 via Nonesuch. Brad Cook (Bon Iver, Kevin Morby, Waxahatchee) produced the 11-track follow-up to 2022’s Life On Earth. Segerra recorded the album in Durham, North Carolina just a month after the death of her father.

Alynda Segerra was joined by a full band on the ABC late-night television show including bass, guitar, drums and saxophone. “Snake Plant” has become a staple of the Hurray For The Riff Raff live repertoire and the Kimmel performance showed why. Segerra belted out the auto-biographical song with power and purpose.

Segerra discussed “Snake Plant” with Oxford American, writing of the song …

A memory box in a song, the first verse is about my father driving my aunt, brother, and me down to Florida every summer in a minivan. We would stay in Florida for a month or so and visit my grandfather and aunts. I have very potent memories of hot summers and trespassing onto farms that weren’t ours so my grandfather could brag and show me livestock that actually belonged to his boss. My first experience with hurricanes: my father would joke he was going to tie me and him up to the big tree outside and we would ride out the storm together. Many moments alone listening to music, dreaming up what I wanted my life to be, dreaming up my getaway. The rest is what I found out in the world: community, grief, love, passion, death. I always wanted to write my version of Dylan’s “I Was Young When I Left Home,” and this is it.

Watch Hurray For The Riff Raff performing “Snake Plant” on Jimmy Kimmel Live below: