The singer closed out NYC Pride with a career-spanning setlist that also included “Show Me How You Burlesque,” “Your Body,” and “Ain’t No Other Man”

NYC Pride Island 2023’s packed crowd was spoiled rotten by headliner Christina Aguilera. Closing out pride weekend in the city on Sunday, the singer delivered a career-spanning performance in a shimmering one-piece. In between her defining hits like “Genie in a Bottle” in the first half of the 13-song setlist and “Beautiful” and “Fighter” in the second half, Aguilera surprised the audience with a special guest appearance from Adam Lambert, who joined for “Lady Marmalade.”

Lambert and Aguilera are two pop singers with powerhouse vocals strong enough to face off against one another and still be evenly matched. The singers traded lyrics back and forth, showing off their range with some impromptu choreography sprinkled into the mix.

“Who knew that a friendly ‘have a great show’ text would turn into an invitation to perform with the iconic diva Xtina?!” Lambert wrote on Instagram following the performance. “Like many of you know, I’ve been a stan for her since like…. ‘2000!!! I learned how to truly wail listening to her. Thank you Xtina for this surreal moment to celebrate NY Pride!!! I adore you!”

Earlier in the night, Aguilera welcomed A Great Big World’s Ian Axel to the stage to perform their 2013 hit ballad “Say Something,” one of the very few slow-tempo moments in the set. The rest of the performance featured big hitters, from “Show Me How You Burlesque” and “Dirrty” to “What A Girl Wants” and “Ain’t No Other Man.”

“It has been such a long and beautiful journey in my career, and I feel like I’ve come full circle today at this point,” Aguilera told the Pride Island crowd. “Thank you guys so much for giving me everything a girl could have asked for … I want to give everything back to you at this point — you deserve all of it and more.”

She added: “There’s times where we’re looking for answers and looking for hope. There’s a lot of bleak things out there right now. We are here tonight and we stand in unison to be free to be ourselve. Sometimes we have to remember to stay hopeful and wish others well even in the darkest times. So let’s put well wishes into the world. Here’s hoping for a beautiful future.”