“THIS MAN JUST RAISED THE BAR FOR THIS SONG
“THIS MAN JUST RAISED THE BAR FOR THIS SONG!” When Chris Stapleton stepped onto the Super Bowl LVII stage to perform the U.S. national anthem, nobody saw this coming. People expected the usual big, dramatic singalong—but Stapleton went in a completely different direction. With a black Fender Telecaster hanging from his neck, he skipped the showy a cappella style and let his raw, smoky voice do the talking. One clean, fingerpicked riff filled the stadium, quiet but powerful, creating a mood that felt almost unreal. The moment hit straight to the chest. Now, with 8.8 million views and counting, fans aren’t just praising it—they’re calling it a masterpiece. Stapleton didn’t just sing the anthem. He changed how people think it should be done.
When celebs sing the American National Anthem, the internet always laps it up, whether it’s Demi Lovato’s pitch-perfect a capella version on the World Series pitch or *that* god-awful Fergie vid. But when Kentucky’s country legend, Chris Stapleton, took to the pitch at the Super Bowl LVII, he stripped away the Hollywood egomania of his predecessors for a viral moment like no other.
Chris’ version at Arizona’s State Farm Stadium has racked up over 8.8M views to date, and we at the Music Man can easily understand why. With a black Fender Telecaster slung around his neck, Chris rejected the a cappella standard for celeb singers, lining his smoking cool voice with a clean, fingerpicked riff that conjured such an otherworldly atmosphere, one pro sportsman could be seen completely moved to tears.
That’s not to say Chris didn’t absolutely nail the vocals in his instrumental rendition. His raspy voice ran thick with Southern comfort as he belted the anthem to his solo guitar work, packing his voice with pure soul. Truly authentic and 100% spellbinding.
As the ten-time Grammy Award winner showed the celeb world how it’s done, Oscar winner and deaf from birth American Sign Language interpreter, Troy Kotsur, joined Chris on the Super Bowl pitch to translate the National Anthem lyrics live. They were also joined by the Armed Forces Color Guard and drummers from “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band.
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Aged 44 at the time of this gig, Chris’s new gold-standard Super Bowl show anticipated the release of his fifth studio album, Higher, which dropped in the last chunk of 2023.
