‘Empire’ Returns to Fox With Appearances By Chris Rock, Lenny Kravitz & Alicia Keys; Ne-Yo to Produce Music + See Cast Perform!

Jussie Smollet, Gabby Sidebe, Taraji P. Henson

Great news for Empire fans! As expected, the show will return with a bang. On Monday, during Fox’s Upfronts, they announced their return this fall. Viewers can expected 18 episodes.

A few new faces have been confirmed to pop-up including Chris Rock, Lenny Kravitz and Alicia Keys — all of which will make appearances. Quincy, the son of Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, has said that he plans to appear on next season, but this information has not yet been confirmed by the network.

NeYo

NE-YO, who has spoken publicly of his love for the show and desire to appear on it, has officially closed a deal to write music for Season 2, joining the series’ current music producer Timbaland.

“We just signed NE-YO who’s going to be writing all new music with Timbaland,” announced Fox co-chairs Dana Walden and Gary Newman to the thrill of anyone who thought mid-’00s R&B was underrated.

According to reports, next season will be divided into two parts. Part 1 in the fall, ending with a cliffhanger, and Part 2 in the spring—with a crazy cliffhanger for the mid-season hiatus in which a fourth Lyon son will emerge, as played by Zac Efron.

[SEE THE CAST PERFORM DURING THE UPFRONTS ON THE NEXT PAGE.]