Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez made a surprise appearance to introduce The Strokes at their huge hometown show in New York City last night (October 2).
The New York indie icons were playing a one-off show at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens, with Beach House, TV On The Radio and Fcukers also on the bill.
Before The Strokes took to the stage, Ocasio-Cortez appeared in front of the crowd and declared that “the greatest city in the world is now welcoming the greatest rock band of our generation”, before bringing out Sanders.
The Vermont senator then praised the band for “standing up for economic justice, fighting racism, understanding that healthcare is a human right”.
He also urged those in attendance to take part in November’s elections, telling the crowd that “we have all got to get out to vote”, and spoke about opposing authoritarianism.
Watch footage of the appearance below.
Senator Sanders and Rep. Ocasio-Cortez introducing the Strokes with 40,000 friends pic.twitter.com/ocdSLl85jO
— Jeremy Slevin (@jeremyslevin) October 3, 2026
The Strokes brought out AOC and Bernie Sanders tonight in NYC pic.twitter.com/Ha3KGw57Ah
— Mike Tee (@ItsMikeTee) October 3, 2026
The surprise introduction continued a long association between The Strokes and Sanders. In 2020, the band headlined a ‘Get Out The Vote’ rally for his presidential campaign in Durham, New Hampshire.
At the time, frontman Julian Casablancas described Sanders as a “dedicated, diligent, & trustworthy patriot – and fellow native New Yorker”, adding that the band supported his efforts to challenge corporate influence in US politics.
Ocasio-Cortez was also part of that 2020 event, and later appeared alongside John Mulaney at a Strokes fundraiser for New York mayoral candidate Maya Wiley in 2021.
Last night’s Queens concert was announced in June alongside the postponement of The Strokes’ seventh album ‘Reality Awaits’.
The record eventually arrived in July. NME’s four-star review stated: “Whether unleashing disses or getting deep into the weird and wonderful, a quarter of a century on from their debut, The Strokes sound more alive and locked in than they have in years.
“While ‘Reality Awaits’ does have its more dud moments – the opening one-two of ‘Psycho Shit’ and Dine N’Dash’ are a little meandering, while closer ‘Tyrants On The Mellow Moon’ similarly lacks the desired impact – it’s proof that letting bands go in unexpected directions can pay off big time.”
The Strokes are due to bring their ‘Reality Awaits’ tour to the UK later this month, including two nights at London’s O2 as part of their first full UK tour in 20 years.
