Ingrid Andress’ National Anthem: Why We Should Give Her a Break
UPDATED as of 2pm on 7/16/24
By now, you've probably seen footage of country singer Ingrid Andress' performance of our National Anthem before the 2024 MLB Home Run Derby.
If not, you can hear it here:
Andress' version is being widely panned across social media as one of the worst public performances of "The Star-Spangled Banner" ever, rivaling - or even surpassing - those of Fergie and Roseanne Barr.
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How bad was it? There's no shortage of scathing comments beneath the above video on YouTube.
In Defense of Ingrid Andress
I've had the privilege of meeting the Michigan-born Ingrid Andress on a handful of occasions. She's an extremely talented Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter, sassy and opinionated, and I expect she would be the first to admit that her Home Run Derby performance wasn't great.
The nastiest of the keyboard warriors say Ingrid should "never be allowed to sing again" and that it's "okay to tell your kids they're not good at things".
I'd venture a guess that most of the morning-after haters aren't familiar with Ingrid's body of work. Her 2019 single "More Hearts Than Mine" topped the country charts, quickly becoming her signature song. She's since topped the charts again with singer Sam Hunt and "Wishful Drinking". Ingrid Andress is far from being an untalented newbie.
Singing the National Anthem
Singing the National Anthem before a crowd is not something that anyone takes lightly.
I've done it myself at rodeos, basketball games, even last year's Ingham County Fair; I know from personal experience. It's a challenging song melodically, especially to sing live without any kind of accompaniment. Many well-known artists won't even attempt it.
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I can promise you that Ingrid rehearsed and practiced the song countless times before that Home Run Derby performance. I can also promise you that she never intended it to sound like it did. There had to have been external factors in the moment - which we may or may not ever learn - that caused things to go awry. (Turns out, she says she was drunk. See below.)
Give Ingrid Andress credit. She powered through, despite things not going according to plan. Remember the New Year's Eve performance that Mariah Carey just quit trying mid-song and blamed everyone around her? This wasn't that.
UPDATE as of 2pm, 7/16/24
Ingrid Andress took to social media to address what was going on behind the scenes during her now infamous rendition of the National Anthem.
Past Notable National Anthem Performances
Gallery Credit: Clay Moden
Facebook Reacts to Chris Stapleton's National Anthem Performance.
Gallery Credit: Kyle Matthews