The Super Bowl happened Sunday in Las Vegas, and the Chiefs outlasted the San Francisco 49ers in overtime to take home the Lombardi trophy. It was a sloppy, uninspiring game for the first three quarters as both teams took turns punting and turning the ball over, but as usual, Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce brought Taylor Swift home a Lombardi and another Super Bowl ring.
Aside from the uninspiring play on the field, the extracurricular activities were more entertaining than the game at times. There were a handful of good commercials and some celebrity sightings sandwiched around a ho-hum halftime show from Usher. Perhaps the most entertaining moments were before the game started.
After someone named Andra Day performed “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” also known as the black national anthem, two well-known stars brought home the next two traditional performances. Reba McEntire wowed with an understated, straightforward rendition of the National Anthem that was a classy, beautiful departure from the self-congratulatory, long-winded performances of years past.
The most touching moment of the pregame belonged to an unlikely performer. Pop star Post Malone performed “America the Beautiful” and absolutely crushed a performance that was soulful and understated, bringing many on the sidelines to tears. As Taylor Swift and Ryan Reynold’s wife, Blake Lively, swayed to the music in the luxury suite, the stadium was enraptured by the emotion Malone displayed while honoring the nation.
The “Circles” singer looked dapper in a brown suede jacket and traditional Western bolo tie as he stood with his guitar and gave a sweet serenade to America. In the days leading up to the moment, Malone talked about the nerves that come along with such a big moment: “I’m very nervous, but excited, I’m excited. It’s just fun and super epic to be able to go out there and sing a song so many beautiful artists have sang before on this stage. I’m just gonna do my best, just do my best, and give it what I got. My dad told me, ‘You’ll never make everybody happy. So just be yourself and do your best at everything you do.’ Do it your way and do it with love.”
The “Better Now” singer certainly made the song his and didn’t alter the melody or incorporate any unnecessary theatrics into a song that means so much to so many Americans. Vegas is very special to Malone, as that is where he got engaged to his unidentified fiance. He recalled that: “I had lost a significant amount of money at the table. We go upstairs and I’m off my rocker hammered and I was like, ‘Hey, you wanna marry me?’ I got a ring and all this stuff. And she said, ‘No.’ She’s like, ‘Ask me tomorrow’ and I was like, ‘Alright.’ And then I did and I was sober and it was nice.”
Not exactly a storybook engagement, but Post Malone hasn’t had a storybook career. The new dad also talked about his new Bud Light commercial with Peyton Manning. He continued: “I’m here for the three-peat, and stoked to be back with Bud Light for my third Super Bowl commercial. We created something truly epic and pretty damn funny together that I know the fans will love.”
Between the division of the black anthem, the uninspiring play for most of the game, and a mostly boring halftime show, at least Reba and Post Malone made America proud, and both deserve praise for their heartwarming, patriotic performances.
Featured image screen grab from embedded YouTube video
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