Super Bowl LVII is officially underway.
Chris Stapleton kicked off Sunday’s NFL championship game with a soulful performance of the national anthem.
The country singer, 44, belted “The Star-Spangled Banner” while playing guitar at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., before the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles took the field to compete for the coveted Vince Lombardi Trophy.
Stapleton moved several players to tears, in addition to Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni.
The pregame also saw “Abbott Elementary” star Sheryl Lee Ralph and R&B hitmaker Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and “America the Beautiful,” respectively.
Stapleton admitted ahead of the big game that he was feeling nervous about taking on the national anthem.
“It’s [a song] that can go horribly wrong, as we’ve seen many times in the past. Hopefully it won’t happen to me — knock on wood,” he joked Thursday at a press conference in Phoenix, Ariz. “But if you’re gonna do it, this is the place to do it.”
Advertisement
Super Bowl 2023
The “Tennessee Whiskey” crooner has a busy year ahead of him, having recently extended his All-American Road Show, which will feature special guests Charley Crockett, Marcus King, Nikki Lane, Margo Price, Allen Stone, Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives and The War and Treaty.
Advertisement
The tour launches on March 16 in Houston and travels to US cities including Los Angeles, Syracuse, NY, and Nashville before concluding on Aug. 25 in Alpharetta, Ga.
Stapleton is the latest artist to be tapped to sing the national anthem on Super Bowl Sunday, following in the footsteps of legends like Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Billy Joel, Jennifer Hudson and Lady Gaga.
Rihanna is set to headline this year’s halftime show, marking the “We Found Love” singer’s highly anticipated return to music after a years-long hiatus.