The Grammy Award-winning performer will sing the song as part of the pre-game festivities at the U.S Bank Stadium on February 4.
- Jan 15, 2018
AceShowbiz - Weeks before Super Bowl LII kicks off, NFL has announced that Broadway star Leslie Odom Jr. will take the stage at the annual championship to sing "America the Beautiful". The Grammy Award-winning performer will sing the song as part of the pre-game festivities at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday, February 4.
Leslie will be joining a list of famous names who have performed "America the Beautiful", including Mary J. Blige, Marc Anthony, Alicia Keys and Jennifer Hudson. His performance will be televised live on NBC. On behalf of the National Association of the Deaf, actor Alexandria Wailes will perform in sign language both the track and the National Anthem.
Following the announcement, Leslie took to Instagram to express his excitement of being able to sing the track at the annual championship. "Excited to perform 'America the Beautiful' at Super Bowl LII. Tune in on February 4 @NFL @SNFonNBC #SBLII See you soon, Minneapolis," he shared.
The announcement came a week after NFL revealed on "Good Morning Football" that Pink would be singing the National Anthem before the game starts. This marks the songstress' first appearance at the Super Bowl. "We have a huge exclusive announcement to make ahead of Super Bowl LII. You guys wanna know who's singing the National Anthem?" host Kay Adams said, before revealing, "It's no other than the superstar Pink!"
Justin Timberlake, meanwhile, will headline the halftime show, marking his first performance at the game since his infamous "nipplegate" incident back in 2004. The "Filthy" singer is determined to deliver an amazing performance at the show, as many are disappointed over his headliner announcement.
"It's hard for him not to read the negative comments about him doing the halftime show and he is disappointed that people are trying to tear down what he plans to be an amazing show," a source close to the singer told HollywoodLife.com. "He feels like he is going to give 110 percent and that the past incident with [Janet Jackson] shouldn't be attacked. He plans to prove everyone wrong and make all the detractors eat their words!"
