Lake Beach

In this pre-taped music video parody, a country music trio — host Nate Bargatze, cast member Andrew Dismukes, and cast member James Austin Johnson — perform an original bro-country song called "Lake Beach," an ode to the uniquely landlocked Southern tradition of treating a muddy lake shoreline like a beach resort. The song lovingly skewers the specificity of that experience: overcrowded port-a-johns, phones perpetually at 20%, strangers you half-know, dip cups, and a cooler full of bread but no sandwich fixings. Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters appears as a cornhole antagonist. The sketch went viral for its hyper-specific authenticity, resonating with viewers across nearly every US state.

- James Austin Johnson revealed on Late Night with Seth Meyers (Nov 2, 2023) that he and Nate Bargatze are both from Nashville, TN, and their fathers are college buddies who were texting each other throughout the episode week. - Johnson cited his inspiration as noticing that modern pop-country songs always describe parties that "sound like the worst hangs of all time." - The sketch became one of the most acclaimed of SNL Season 49, appearing on multiple best-of-2023 lists. - Dave Grohl's appearance ties into a broader Christopher Walken/Foo Fighters story arc in the episode. - The episode (S49E3) was the most-watched of Season 49 at the time of airing. - Video stats as of research date: ~2.5M views, 30K likes on YouTube.