Charlie Puth didn’t wait for an invitation to sing the national anthem at Super Bowl LX-he created his own audition and sent it straight to the decision-makers.
At a Glance
- Puth recorded a solo demo on Rhodes piano and submitted it to Roc Nation
- Jay-Z and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell approved the tape
- The singer calls “The Star-Spangled Banner” the “hardest piece of music ever written”
- Why it matters: Puth’s self-driven pitch bypassed the traditional selection process for America’s biggest sporting event
In a Rolling Stone interview published January 20, the 34-year-old revealed he has “always wanted” to perform the anthem. Rather than waiting for an official tryout, he cut a stripped-down version at home.
“I recorded a little demo, just me singing with the Rhodes and sent it to Roc Nation,” he said. “I’ve been told Jay-Z loved it, and it got to [NFL Commissioner Roger] Goodell and they all said that I could do it.”
Puth emphasized that he initiated the opportunity: “I applied. I auditioned for it, but I made up my own audition because I’ve always wanted to do it-because I love it musically. It’s the best song. Musically, it’s so special.”
The Pressure of Whitney’s Shadow
With the gig secured, Puth acknowledged the benchmark set by Whitney Houston’s 1991 rendition.
“She’s from Newark. And I would be the second New Jersey native, as The Star-Ledger wrote, to sing the national anthem,” he noted. “It’s a great honor.”
He plans to draw inspiration from Houston while staying authentic: “I’m going to be inspired by what Whitney did, but I can’t ever touch what she did. That’s the best one ever done-that and the Chris Stapleton one. That was raw. Made grown men cry. I just want to do my own thing with the hardest piece of music ever written.”
Puth added that the performance offers a chance to shift public perception: “I feel like people don’t really think of me as, like, a stand-alone vocalist at times.”
Backlash and Response
After the December announcement, online critics questioned the choice. Political commentator Link Lauren, who has 170,000-plus followers, posted: “Man we’ve fallen from when Whitney Houston sang at the Super Bowl. Charlie Puth? He’s not gonna give us vocals I’m afraid.”
Puth replied directly: “I’ll never claim to be as good of a singer as Whitney Houston ever was. But I assure you we’re putting a really special arrangement together-in D major. It’ll be one of my best vocal performances.”
Musical Breakdown
In an Instagram video posted November 30, Puth used a locker-room whiteboard to explain the anthem’s difficulty to a group of football players.
“‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ is a piece of music that has extreme vocal range,” he said. “Most hard-to-sing songs span just one octave range, like a low D to a high D, but ‘The Star-Spangled Banner,’ it goes from a low D to a high D, plus five more notes, all the way up to a very high A.”
The mini-lesson ended with Puth calling the anthem “one of the most beautiful pieces of music” and urging the players to “treat every game like it’s the Super Bowl.”
Key Takeaways
- Puth’s self-submitted demo convinced Roc Nation and the NFL in a single round
- He will be only the second New Jersey-born soloist to perform the anthem at the big game
- The singer promises a unique arrangement in D major designed to showcase his vocal ability
- Public skepticism has fueled his determination to deliver a standout performance
Super Bowl LX takes place in February, where millions will hear whether his homemade audition tape translates into a memorable live rendition.
