Historic mistake: The time Christina Aguilera messed up the lyrics of the National Anthem in the Super Bowl
The United States' national anthem is one of the most difficult songs to sing, but being invited to perform it is an honor. Hey, no pressure.
The Star-Spangled Banner, the United States' national anthem, is notoriously difficult to sing. There is an incredible range of high and low notes and the song spans one-and-a-half octaves, making it challenging for even the most well-trained singers. Even the lyrics, despite being very few, tend to confuse people as it’s quite easy to lose one’s place. This was the case for Christina Aguilera in 2011.
Aguilera’s historic mistake
Unfortunately, although there are so many cases of celebrities flubbing the national anthem, none seem to be easily forgotten. In Aguilera’s case, she did so in front of a crowd of 103,219 people at the Super Bowl in 2011, when the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers played at the Cowboys' Stadium in Arlington, TX. And it’s still remembered to this day.
As she was singing the national anthem, Aguilera got lost in the second verse. The line that should be sung “O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming”, she instead repeated an earlier line, but flubbed it a bit, singing, “What so proudly we watched at the twilight’s last reaming”.
As is typical, Aguilera was criticized on social media and news outlets alike. She quickly sent out an apology for the error and said in a statement, “I can only hope that everyone could feel my love for this country and that the true spirit of its anthem still came through.”
Aguilera is by far not the only singer to have made this kind of mistake. Artists of incredible caliber have butchered and struggled with the Star-Spangled Banner for years. In 2001, Macy Gray was famously booed for her rendition ahead of the Pro Football Hall of Fame game, calling it “life’s most embarrassing moment” for her.
Country singer Ingrid Andress' performance ahead of the MLB Home Run Derby in June 2024 was dubbed the “worst performance of all time”, though the singer later announced that she was drunk at the time and would check herself into a rehabilitation facility. She, like Aguilera, apologized for her rendition.
Just when I thought nothing could unite this country, America comes together to dunk on — and I say this as politely and objectively as possible — the worst national anthem performance of all time. #HomeRunDerby #HRDerby pic.twitter.com/ov4hWv9X3F
— Moonlight Graham 🌙✨ (@ReeceKelleyG) July 16, 2024
Fergie was another artist to be reamed for her rendition of the national anthem ahead of the NBA All-Star game in 2018, Mike Eli of the Eli Young Band once messed up the lines so badly that he had to start over before an NFL game, and Eric Burton made a similar mistake to Aguilera with the lyrics in 2022.
Ahead of the Super Bowl in 2011, when Aguilera was announced as the singer for the national anthem, she’d said she was excited, as it was a song she’d practiced since she was just seven years old. But it seems no one is immune.
Who is singing the national anthem at Super Bowl LIX?
Ahead of this Sunday’s Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, Jon Batiste will perform the national anthem at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. The five-time Grammy winner previously sang the national anthem at the NBA All-Star game in 2017, which he sang while also playing the piano.
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