Elon senior Khoreen Johnson already knows where she will be on March 5.
“In the front row is where I plan to be,” Johnson said. “One thousand percent with the rest of my friend group. We already talked about it.”
She wants to be front and center when comedian and former “Saturday Night Live” cast member Leslie Jones performs as this year’s Elon Day comedian.
Elon’s Student Union Board announced the selection Feb. 2 in a post on Instagram. Last year, comedian Joe Gatto performed for Elon Day.
Johnson said she didn’t expect Elon to choose a comedian she knew, let alone admired, for this year’s Elon Day.
“It was a complete and total surprise to my entire friend group,” Johnson said. “We did not know this was gonna happen. And this was, like, the best surprise, honestly.”
In her freshman year, she remembers sitting in the back of the crowd when comedian and former SNL cast member Alex Moffat performed for Elon Day. But this year, she said it means a lot to her that Elon selected a comedian that she can relate to on a more personal level.
“The Black community appreciates this very, very much,” Johnson said. “It's important, especially Black women on this campus, since the post dropped, that's all we've been talking about. This matters. And we're very appreciative, even if some people can't show up, even if nobody shows up, like what they did matters. And we're very, very grateful, and we see them trying to mix and match people into the bigger scene at Elon, and it's very much appreciated.”
Jones first joined SNL as a writer in October 2014, partway through the NBC show’s 40th season. She quickly became a regular cast member, often appearing alongside Colin Jost on the show’s “Weekend Update” segment. During her time with SNL, Jones earned three Emmy nominations, as well as Writer’s Guild Award and NAACP Award nominations. In 2017, she made it to TIME’s 100 most influential people list.
While working on SNL, Jones starred in movies such as Ghostbusters and Masterminds, both released in 2016.
Elon junior Brianna Crawford said she watched Masterminds a few days before SUB announced Jones as the Elon Day comedian. Crawford said she likes Jones because of her bold and unapologetic comedy style.
“I really don't know what to expect, but I do expect to laugh,” Crawford said. “So I'm excited. I feel like she's definitely one who's like, gonna ruffle some feathers, but always keep it fun. Always keep it respectful.”
Jones finished out her five seasons with SNL in 2019. She then went on to host ABC’s reboot of the game show “Supermarket Sweep” for two seasons from 2020-2022.
Jones released her most recent comedy special in October 2025 called “Leslie Jones: Life - Part 2” on Peacock and Prime Video. She released her first comedy special with Netflix called “Leslie Jones: Time Machine in 2020.”
Elon senior Femi-John Akinola-Mmanywa said he’s thought about trying out stand-up comedy and enjoys Jones’s style.
“It's really interesting and very entertaining and expressive way,” Akinola-Mmanywa said. “I like how expressive she is with her comedy.”
Jones is currently performing on her comedy tour “Leslie Jones: Live!”, which started in 2025.
In 2021, Jones starred in the movie Coming 2 America, a sequel to the 1988 film Coming to America, alongside Eddie Murphy, securing an MTV Movie Award and a People’s Choice Award nomination.
While Jones has an extensive portfolio, Johnson said what she enjoys most about Jones’s work is her openness to publicly speak about mental health, grief, and being proud of who you are and where you come from.
“I like that she takes the opportunity to make it known that she knows that she's not perfect, but she's going to stand for and be honest with her audience, and that's what I felt was most important and most impactful about her journey, especially towards mainstream media,” Johnson said.
Jones’s Elon Day performance is at 8:30 p.m. March 5 in the Alumni Gym. Tickets are available starting Feb. 4 in the SUB Office on the first floor of the Moseley Student Center.
Johnson said she plans to be one of the first students to pick up a ticket. As a senior, she said having the chance to see Jones perform will be a great way to round out her Elon experience.
“This goes back to some people's roots, and that's what's important,” Johnson said. “It's more than just a day. It's someone's life. And that's what's important for me, for my friends.”