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Well, it appears many people are unhappy with Jewel’s rendition of our national anthem. Nevertheless, the pop/country/yodeling star was chosen to perform The Star Spangled Banner earlier in the month for the Indianapolis 500 for this Memorial Day weekend.
Honestly? I kind of liked it. I thought it was fitting for a Memorial Day weekend. I didn’t find it offensive at all. It was certainly different, yes. But I didn’t take offense to it. Should I have?
If you haven’t heard it yet:
.@jeweljk sings the national anthem at the greatest spectacle in racing. #Indy500
: NBC and @peacock pic.twitter.com/rpjuG1o2dk
— INDYCAR on NBC (@IndyCaronNBC) May 28, 2023
Were people offended because it was mellow and slow and didn’t get the fans riled up for the race? Or did they find a different reason for seeing it as disrespectful? Not only was I not offended, but I didn’t think it was disrespectful either. Maybe I’m wrong.
Of course, it was no Whitney Houston performance, that’s for sure. And at least we didn’t get a crotch pull and a spit on the ground when Roseanne Barr squawked out the tune back in 1990 during the Padres Game.
And can we at least be thankful that a singing celebrity even said yes when asked to do the honors? Jewel said Yes, did her version of it, and didn’t take a knee or use it to protest how much we should hate America. Jewel also knew all the words to the anthem. She is a folk singer, a yodeler. So what did ya’ll expect?
Even Jimi Hendrix did his thing on his guitar with The Star Spangled Banner in 1969 at Woodstock. Some people thought it was in protest, but it wasn’t. But I was only 3 years old when he performed at Woodstock, so all I have to go by are news articles and YouTube videos.
So while Jewel’s sedated delivery of our country’s national anthem was questioned by some patriots, I say give her a break. It wasn’t disrespectful. Maybe you disagree.
If you haven’t watched her 3-hour interview at The Joe Rogan Experience, I highly suggest you do so. The interview was captivating. Jewel is an interesting person and has led an exciting life. She’s intelligent and talented. And did you know her family is kind of famous too? The Kilcher family of Alaska: The Last Frontier, a reality show on Discovery, are her people.
Oh, and I almost forgot, congratulations to Josef Newgarden of the Penske Team for winning the Indy 500.
Feature Image: Davidwbaker/CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
GWB says: I don’t mind some variations on The Star-Spangled Banner. The thing that bothers me is when an artist renders it so as to be about themselves rather than about the flag and the country.
I didn’t get far into Jewel’s version as it grated on me. It didn’t seem to grasp the event about which it was written, nor adequately convey the emotion with which it was composed. I didn’t hear the whole thing so I can’t say if it qualified as a Hey-look-at-me! version or not. But I think it failed on the “proper patriotic spirit” level with the first couple of lines.
However, I wouldn’t say it was disrespectful, necessarily. As you said, at least she sang it, sang the correct words, and didn’t bring any nasty or stupid opinionating along with it.
GWB says: Oh, and before someone comments on “how hard it is to sing”, I do not think The Star-Spangled Banner is hard to sing, except in the professional-singer realm. The tune for it is a bar tune, capable of being sung by a bunch of rowdy men deep into their cups. If you sing it in a spirit other than that, you’re doing it wrong, IMO. It should be sung lustily, aggressively, with respect for all that has made us America, and with heartfelt love for the country.
And that last note is not really that high.
Carol Marks says: I get it. Thank you for reading and commenting. And being respectful.
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