Lovato jumps into anthem pressure cooker
Demi Lovato’s idea of taking it slow as she eases back into her career just took an interesting turn.
The singer, who’s been in self-care mode since her 2018 overdose, has announced she’ll be singing the national anthem at Super Bowl LIV on Feb. 2.
That would be the same annual Super Bowl that Nielsen says drew an audience of 98.2 million people in the United States and sparked 32.3 million social media interactions last year.
No pressure.
“It’s important to remember that I am so cautious this time around of jumping back into things. I’ve really decided to take my time with things,” Lovato said at the 2019 Teen Vogue Summit in November. “When the time is right, I will put it out there. I am dying to release new music … but everything in due time.”
It looks like time is coming due.
Lovato will have a highprofile dry run Sunday night when she takes the stage at this year’s Grammy Awards, but she definitely won’t be singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at that show. That’s a big, big difference.
The patriotic tune has bedeviled many, even before the song itself became a national issue in addition to a national anthem.
Gladys Knight knocked it out at last year’s big game, no problem, once she weathered a Colin Kaepernikrelated storm, but Christina Aguilera’s performance back in 2011 still holds the title for worst Super Bowl anthem fail. Xtina jumbled the lyrics at the beginning of the song, instantly becoming America’s punching bag, then blamed it on being “caught up in the moment.”
Aaron Neville, the late Dr. John and the late Aretha Franklin — all serious talents — didn’t blow the lyrics, but their 2006 Super Bowl performance, which included a full gospel choir, was roundly trashed. “(T) hese elements added up to something that just didn’t leave us feeling good,” Billboard said. “Perplexed, maybe, and surely uncomfortable. But definitely not good.”