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I have a friend from high school who is a Sargent in the Army. He has had 2 tours in Iraq and 1 in Jordan. He posted this on facebook, and gave me permission to copy it. He even told me I could use his name, but out of respect for him, I will not. He was a more than capable Bass in the the select group of our high school. He summarized my feelings very well.
I'll take some shots over the bow for this but here goes anyway - Kelly Clarkson didnt flub the words to the Star Spangled Banner (aka our National Anthem) like that wannabe pig that sang it last year, but why do these "stars" feel compelled to add their "twist" to it? With all the kindness I can muster, I give this one piece of advice to the next pop star who is asked to sing the national anthem at a sporting event: save the vocal gymnastics and the physical gyrations for your concerts. Just sing this song the way you were taught to sing it in kindergarten — straight up, no styling. Sing it with the constant awareness that there are soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines watching you from bases and outposts all over the world. Don’t make them cringe with your self-centered ego gratification. Sing it as if you are standing before a row of 86-year-old WWII vets wearing their Purple Hearts, Silver Stars and flag pins on their cardigans and you want them to be proud of you for honoring them and the country they love — not because you want them to think you are a superstar musician. They could see that from the costumes, the makeup and the entourages. Sing “The Star Spangled Banner” with the courtesy and humility that tells the audience that it is about America, not you.
I honestly emailed the NFL and NBC both last February and asked them to please let me sing it for one fourth of the price that they paid Aguillera, and they emailed back that "they would take into consideration".
I'll take some shots over the bow for this but here goes anyway - Kelly Clarkson didnt flub the words to the Star Spangled Banner (aka our National Anthem) like that wannabe pig that sang it last year, but why do these "stars" feel compelled to add their "twist" to it? With all the kindness I can muster, I give this one piece of advice to the next pop star who is asked to sing the national anthem at a sporting event: save the vocal gymnastics and the physical gyrations for your concerts. Just sing this song the way you were taught to sing it in kindergarten — straight up, no styling. Sing it with the constant awareness that there are soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines watching you from bases and outposts all over the world. Don’t make them cringe with your self-centered ego gratification. Sing it as if you are standing before a row of 86-year-old WWII vets wearing their Purple Hearts, Silver Stars and flag pins on their cardigans and you want them to be proud of you for honoring them and the country they love — not because you want them to think you are a superstar musician. They could see that from the costumes, the makeup and the entourages. Sing “The Star Spangled Banner” with the courtesy and humility that tells the audience that it is about America, not you.
I honestly emailed the NFL and NBC both last February and asked them to please let me sing it for one fourth of the price that they paid Aguillera, and they emailed back that "they would take into consideration".
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