‘US Is Not the Land of the Free’ Singer Chosen for Super Bowl Anthem
Mickey Guyton will sing 'The Star-Spangled Banner'
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The National Football League announced the singer of the national anthem at this year’s Super Bowl will be Mickey Guyton, whose biggest hit is a song mocking the idea that America is free.
The NFL also announced the Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles would be opened by a rendition of the so-called black national anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” including Francis Scott Key's classic most Americans are used to.
Guyton will sing “The Star-Spangled Banner," the first black artist to be nominated for a Best Country Album Grammy.
It is a great achievement for the singer, but it is also worth noting her songs are political in nature.
One of the lyrics to Guyton’s “Black Like Me” focuses on the non-stop misery of African-Americans.
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The lyrics are:
“It’s a hard life on Easy Street.
"Just white painted picket fences far as you can see.
"If you think we live in the land of the free,
"You should try to be black like me.”
This is for you George Floyd #blacklikeme pic.twitter.com/LibtOSgq39
— Mickey Guyton (@MickeyGuyton) May 28, 2020
The song was released in June 2020 amid the Black Lives Matter riots across the country.
Guyton also tweeted about George Floyd as riots spread across America following his death.
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Guyton is right in her stance that slavery is a stain on the country’s history, and plenty of Americans from all races was outraged at Floyd’s death.
A tweet she published in October 2020 leans in that direction.
I have to be honest when I found out I was having a son, there was instant fear. I’m having a black son. It’s heavy. I just pray we change this system so I never have to teach him what to do when he is pulled over by law enforcement. 🙏🏾
— Mickey Guyton (@MickeyGuyton) October 14, 2020
Last year, The National Football League (NFL) said it would be playing the “Black National Anthem” as “a prominent part of all big-league events.”
As Neon Nettle reported:
The events the anthem will be played include the Super Bowl, NFL Playoffs, NFL Draft, and NFL Kickoff games.
During the first week of the 2020 season, the NFL played the anthem, “Lift Every Voice And Sing.”
Alicia Keys and the Cleveland All-City Choir singing “Lift Every Voice and Sing” was also featured before Super Bowl LV and even before the 2021 NFL Draft.
