Tune in to NBC tonight, December 3, from 8-9 p.m. ET/PT for a dazzling display of musical talent and the lighting of the world’s most famous Christmas tree during the 11th annual “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” telecast.

Hosted by Al Roker (“Today”), the star-studded annual tree lighting extravaganza features Beyoncé, Tony Bennett, Neil Boyd, Jonas Brothers, Harry Connick Jr., David Cook, Rosie O’Donnell and The Broadway Kids, Faith Hill, Rascal Flatts, and Solange Knowles performing current hits and holiday classics from Rockefeller Center in New York City.

NBC’s New York flagship station WNBC, and the NBC Hartford station WVIT, will both broadcast an additional live hour of the special locally from 7-8 p.m. prior to the start of the network broadcast.

The tradition of the Rockefeller Christmas tree dates back to the Great Depression in 1933, when the first tree was decked with 700 lights and placed in front of the then eight-month-old RCA Building, now the GE Building. The Christmas tree gathering was enhanced in 1936 with the opening of the Rockefeller Plaza outdoor ice-skating pond. NBC-TV televised the first tree lighting in 1951 on “The Kate Smith Show” and as part of the nationwide “Howdy Doody” television show from 1953-55.

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