Luke Bryan announced on Sunday via Twitter that he will be performing the national anthem at Super Bowl LI.
While NFL fans don’t know which teams will be playing in Super Bowl LI, they now know who will be performing the national anthem. Country music star Luke Bryan took to Twitter to announce the big news that he’ll be the opening act.
The pressure is on Bryan to perform well. Prior to the NFC Championship Game, Mike Williams performed the national anthem beautifully on his saxophone. While Bryan won’t be playing on a saxophone, Bryan’s voice is music to many people’s ears.
This decision by the NFL makes a lot of sense. While halftime shows during the Super Bowl are usually filled with pop, rock, and similar musical styles, it makes sense to include a country act for the anthem. The Super Bowl dominates in the television ratings year after year. Nonetheless, the NFL tries to bring in the fair-weather NFL fans in other ways such as the musical guests to boost their ratings even more.
Excited to perform the National Anthem on @NFL's biggest stage #SB51. See y'all in Houston. pic.twitter.com/MIbk2gJbah
— Luke Bryan (@lukebryan) January 22, 2017
Bryan is one of the best country music performers out there. While the national anthem is pretty straight forward, there is room to be creative. Not every anthem is sung or played the same way from artist to artist and Bryan’s performance should be no different.
Overall, the Super Bowl is more than a game. It’s a spectacle from pre-game through the final whistle. The hardcore NFL fans care about which team ends up winning the game, but thousands of other fans tune in for the musical performances and commercial breaks.
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Bryan’s inclusion as the national anthem performer is a wise move. He’s well-known to country and non-country fans. His performance may gain the star, even more, fans and set the stage for what should be a great Super Bowl LI.