Music

David Byrne Joins Stephen Colbert for Final Musical Performance on ‘The Late Show’

David Byrne appeared as one of the final musical guests on ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’ before the series finale on May 21.

Rolling Stone·May 20, 2026·via Rolling Stone

David Byrne Joins Stephen Colbert for Final Musical Performance on ‘The Late Show’

Ordinary Guys

Stephen Colbert Helps David Byrne Burn Down the House on ‘The Late Show’

Bryne marks one of the final musical guests on the late-night series ahead of its finale on May 21

By Larisha Paul

Larisha Paul

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May 20, 2026

Stephen Colbert has one night left before saying goodbye to The Late Show . Ahead of the series finale, scheduled for May 21, the host welcomed one of the show’s last musical guests for a fiery sendoff: David Byrne , performing Talking Heads classic “Burning Down the House.”

Bryne took the Late Show stage alongside his Why Is The Sky? band. The musicians jammed out in matching blue suits before being joined by Colbert in the same get-up. Flames raged on the screen behind them during the performance. It’s a fitting farewell.

CBS canceled The Late Show in July 2025, citing it as “purely a financial decision,” though it would be difficult to divorce the decision from Donald Trump’s frequent tirades against Colbert. Around the time of the cancellation , the network and its parent company, Paramount, agreed to a $16 million settlement with Trump over the editing of a 60 Minutes episode. This occurred as a specific merger between Paramount and Skydance Media was still awaiting approval by the Federal Communications Commission.