Jaleesa M. Jones

USA TODAY

Viewers may have been expecting Saturday Night Live to kick off on a satirical note, but Kate McKinnon opened the night, singing a different tune.

In the long-running variety show's first episode since Trump’s historic upset, McKinnon appeared at the piano in full Hillary Clinton regalia. With tears pricking the corner of her eyes, the SNL favorite launched into a haunting rendition of the late Leonard Cohen’s slow-burner, Hallelujah.

The cold open served both as a moment of solidarity with those rocked by the election’s outcome and as tribute to the virtuosic songwriter, who died earlier this week.

McKinnon ended the solemn performance with a heartening message: "I’m not giving up and neither should you and live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!"