May 05, 2026
Dan MacMedan/Imagn Images
Jon Stewart is the drummer of a little-known rock band called Church and State. The group performed Sunday at the Sing Us Home festival on Venice Island in Manayunk. Above, Stewart accepts his Emmy Award in 2024 for Outstanding Talk Series for 'The Daily Show.'
Comedian and "The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart was in Philly over the weekend playing drums for his "indie old man emo" band Church and State at the Sing Us Home festival.
Fans of Stewart's career as a political commentator could be forgiven for not knowing he's in a band. Church and State, a fitting name for a Stewart project, formed a few years ago after Stewart decided to learn to play drums during the COVID-19 pandemic. They've played some gigs, including at the famed Stone Pony in Asbury Park, but they haven't officially released any projects.
The Sing Us Home festival, which was held Friday to Sunday on Manayunk's Venice Island, was founded three years ago by singer-songwriter Dave Hause of the Loved Ones. This year's lineup was headlined by the Menzingers and the Mountain Goats, with supporting performances from indie stalwarts Ted Leo, Jenny Owen Youngs, the Flatliners and several of Hause's projects.
Church and State performed Sunday, showcasing a moody and country-tinged collection of songs.
Stewart grew up a music fan in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, and spent time bartending at City Gardens in Trenton before his career in comedy and media took off in the early 1990s. Stewart explained in an Instagram post that he learned to play "smashie smashie" during the pandemic as a way to experience the other side of music fandom.
"It’s been such an incredible gift to sit around (guitarist Andy Bova's) basement like a group of proper 14 year olds and write songs," Stewart, 63, wrote in February. "...Who’s up for some Indie Old Man Emo!!! Not a genre yet…but it’s coming!!!!"
The band is led by singer-songwriter Rick Barry, who's based in Asbury Park, with Bova's father Jim on bass. Emily and Justin Bornemann of Dentist also perform with the group.
The band posted a bunch of photos from Sing Us Home on Tuesday morning.
Church and State's YouTube page has 48 subscribers and only three videos posted from past shows. They've got a long way to go, but if you've ever wanted to see Stewart on a self-described "side quest," Church and State is a window into his creative spirit.
"The feeling you get … when disparate limbs lock in and move in a way they never have before … you can feel new neural pathways opening up … lighting up … It feels like the opposite of death," Stewart wrote about his journey as a drummer.
