How to get K.K. Slider to perform in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

New Animal Crossing: New Horizons players on Switch won’t be seeing K.K. Slider perform for a while.

Unless you’re time traveling, it’ll take more than a week of play to see him perform, if you’re making sure to do everything you can every day. Once unlocking the Resident Services building, Tom Nook will ask you to put down a campsite plot, as well as more housing plots.

After this, he’ll note that he’s a huge K.K. Slider fan and he wants the dog to perform on the island. Unfortunately, your island will very likely not be up to par with what Tom Nook wants to show K.K.

Your island will have to have 3 stars in order to invite K.K. You can check how far along you are by talking to Isabelle about island evaluations. She’ll give you some valuable advice, too. Pay attention to what she tells you to do, as adding what she recommends will improve your star rank.

She might recommend more fences, decorations, flowers, or trees. You can keep talking to her after adding decor to see if you need to add more or if you need to pivot to something else. Your star rank will improve upon talking to Isabelle instantly when you meet the requirements — there’s no need to wait another day.

Image: Nintendo EPD/Nintendo via Polygon

Once you hit 3 stars, Tom Nook will interrupt your conversation with Isabelle in shock, saying he’s going to invite K.K. Slider immediately. K.K. will arrive the next day to put on a show, performing the game’s theme song, “Welcome Horizons.” After the show is over, you’ll get a copy of the song, as well as the ability to terraform your island.

After that, K.K. Slider will start appearing on every Saturday, sticking around in your town plaza. At 6 p.m. he’ll take requests if you ask him to perform specific K.K. songs or he’ll pick one to perform for you. The first song he plays will be in your inventory once he’s done singing. If you’re hosting people in your town during the show, you’ll get it in the mail the next day.

He’ll also show up on your birthday to perform “K.K. Birthday” for you, which you’ll also get a copy of.

For those who aren’t this far in the game, but want his music, don’t fret. A random K.K. Slider song can be bought every day from the Nook Stop’s Nook Shopping feature for 3,200 Bells.

With that, the “story” aspect of New Horizons is over and your island is free to change around in any way you want. The grind doesn’t end however, since there are long-term goals like Nook Mileage to complete and golden tools to earn.