CLEVELAND — Get ready, Cleveland! Just days after the 2021 NFL Draft wrapped its three-day event downtown, the city will soon be in the national spotlight once again – but this time it’s courtesy of our friends at NBC’s Today.
That’s right! Al Roker is coming to Cleveland next week! His upcoming visit was revealed Tuesday morning as Today features America’s reopening by showcasing what's happening in various cities with more people getting vaccinated for COVID-19.
Today hosts Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb joined 3News to make the special announcement.
“All next week, we’re going big in Cleveland," Guthrie said Tuesday morning. "Mr. Roker, who thinks he’s a hometown hero there – and I think he might be, actually – he’s going to kick things off with a special show Monday, May 10.”
Kotb also announced that Roker will be joined by special guest Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers for this special spotlight of our city.
"Al cannot stop talking about you guys," Kotb told the 3News team. "He cannot wait. ... He's been talking about the restaurants, he's been talking about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, all of it."
3News is jumping into the action, too!
"We are breaking out of our studios," 3News' Maureen Kyle explained. "We're going to head into our neighborhoods, we're going to show you guys how our community is finding its way back. We're also going to take a really special look at our Theater District."
Later Tuesday morning, Roker offered some praise for the city of Cleveland while discussing his upcoming visit on Today.
“I worked at WKYC Channel 3 for five years," he said. "It is literally my second home. A lot of folks in Ohio think I’m from Cleveland. Proud to be an adopted son of Cleveland."
We are so excited and really looking forward to seeing Roker in Cleveland on Monday. He’s really like family to all of us since he used to work here at WKYC early in his career. We will definitely have much more with Roker in the days ahead, so stay tuned!
Check out this must-see archive footage from his time at WKYC, which we originally shared back in 2019:
3News also recently teamed up with NBC’s Today as our own Betsy Kling joined their broadcast to unleash an on-air surprise for Roker. It happened as Kling was included in Today’s healthy walking feature in late February – but what Roker didn’t know is that she was in his family’s Shaker Heights neighborhood as his sister popped on screen for a special moment you simply have to see. Watch below: