“O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming.” What song was that line from again? “The Star Strangled Jammer?” Oh right, “The Star Spangled Banner”
Imagine for a second you are a singer who was asked to sing at one of the most anticipated, highly-rated football games of the year: the Super Bowl. You have sung the same song at multiple NBA games over the years and never missed a beat. But this national anthem was different. It seemed everyone’s eyes would be on you for this one. Can you handle the pressure?
As I am sure everyone is aware, Christina Aguilera could not handle it last weekend.
If you think the rest of this article is going to feature bashing Ms. Aguilera and possibly calling her “un-American” for the slip, you are mistaken.
It is true it was definitely worth noticing the mistake, and she should be aware of her error. But I believe the criticism she received was unnecessary.
I suppose I can see (a tiny bit) how people consider Christina Aguilera flubbing the national anthem as a sign of her being “un-American.” She has sung it multiple times before on screen at some NBA games.
This is a huge indicator she does indeed know the words. Perhaps viewers out there should not be so judgmental. She is American. And I am positive she did not mess up the words to contradict that fact.
Reporters and journalists of other sorts are referring to this mess up as a controversy. What defines a controversy exactly? “Controversy” is defined as “a prolonged public dispute, debate or contention; disputation concerning a matter of opinion,” according to Dictionary.com. In comparison to the severity of the Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson halftime show years ago, this does not compare.
And unlike those two, I doubt Christina will be facing disciplinary charges and court hearings.
When I was watching the Super Bowl at my friend’s housewith a large crowd of strangers, we all gasped when she messed up the lyrics.
Everyone had been excited to see Christina performdue to the fact she has done so well in past performances for sporting events and has definitely proved she has got the lungs to carry this one through. They were all there to witness the mistake, and I feel like some mouths might even have dropped.
I remember someone saying, “I am sorry, but there is no excuse for anyone to mess up ‘The Star Spangled Banner.’ It is too big of a deal.” I recall wanting to defend her because Aguilera had become a recent favorite.
But I could not find the words. I agree; the national anthem is of course a huge part of our heritage and history, but messing up one lyric in the song does not call for the crucifixion of a pop star.
I performed a bit of theatre in high school, and for one of my auditions, I mixed up some of the lyrics in my audition piece. I knew my mistake as soon as I had committed it, and I knew everyone that had heard me knew it too.
Still, I kept on singing because I knew persistence would be the thing that would get me a part.
I believe it is understandable to accidentally mess up the lyrics in front of the teams, the network, the fans and everyone watching. The pressure, I am sure, can definitely get to your head and psych you out.
If you mess up a lyric, you would think you would stop singing and apologize for what you had done. But Aguilera, even though part of the messed up line was unintelligible, carried out the song despite the mess up.
She was bombarded with cameras after the song and immediately led through interviews about the “scandal.” She will probably be criticized for this for years to come.
But let’s admit it: Christina finished the song like a champ.
Becca Horton is a freshman majoring in communication. She can be contacted at [email protected].