It’s that time of year again. The 97th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will celebrate a day of thanks while ushering in the forthcoming holiday season, including Christmas.
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This year, the parade kicks off on Thursday (November 23) with more than three million people expected to experience the three-hour-long festivities, featuring 25 balloons, 31 floats, and The festivities will feature 31 floats, 25 balloons, and live performances.
The three-hour, two-and-a-half-mile procession starts at Central Park West and 77th Street and continues south down 6th Avenue before concluding in front of the Macy’s department store on 34th Street.
New cameras have also been set up along the parade route this year to capture different angles of floats of Ronald McDonald, SpongeBob, and other annual favorites for the millions of viewers at home.
[RELATED: Thanksgiving Day Parade Features Performances by Cher, Chicago, and More]
How to Watch
Hosted by Today show hosts Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Al Roker, the 2023 Thanksgiving Day Parade will broadcast live on NBC and also livestream on Peacock.
The live broadcast has been moved up earlier by a half hour this year and will begin at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Performers
Cher, who released her first holiday album, Christmas, in October, is scheduled to perform a festive song from the release outside of Macy’s on 34th Street. The 13-track album debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Holiday Albums chart and at No. 32 on the Billboard 200 and features nine covers and four originals along with guest appearances by Stevie Wonder, Cyndi Lauper, Darlene Love, Michael Bublé and rapper Tyga.
Along with Cher, Chicago will be performing on The Wondership float, sponsored by the Wonder Bread company. The band is promoting the release of their recent holiday album, Chicago Greatest Christmas Hits, and will perform some songs from previous albums.
Along with Cher and Chicago—and some Sesame Street Muppets—the parade will also feature appearances by Drew Holcomb and The Neighbors, Bell Biv DeVoe, Brandy, En Vogue, Jessie James Decker, Ashley Park, ENHYPEN, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, and Pentatonix, along with rapper Paul Russell, fiddler, Amanda Shaw, Columbian singer Manuel Turizo, and country artist Alex Smith.
Other guests include Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells from the Broadway show Gutenberg! The Musical!, 2023 Miss America winner Grace Stanke, Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles, and 11 marching bands that will perform along the parade route.
Photo: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
