Luke Bryan Addresses National Anthem Controversy

Flubbing the words to the National Anthem is never a good thing especially when thousands, or even millions of Americans are watching and waiting to tear you apart. Pop stars such as Christina Aguilera and Jesse McCartney have done it. Country artists like Lauren Alaina and Mike Eli of the Eli Young Band have done it. Luke Bryan didn’t do it. That’s because he had a back up plan.

The “Drunk On You” singer, who has five N0.1 singles under his belt, performed the “Star Spangled Banner” prior to Tuesday night’s MLB All-Star Game. Following his performance, which aired live on Fox, Twitter and Facebook were a-buzz with comments about how Luke looked down at his wrist to read lyrics while he was singing. Many fans came to Luke’s defense noting that it’s better to have the lyrics written down than to mess them up, but some were rather harsh. A few spectators even went as far as calling him “unpatriotic.”

“Morning everyone. I really wanna explain the national anthem performance from last night,” he wrote. “I had a few keys words written down to insure myself that I wouldn’t mess up. I just wanted to do my best. I promise it was from the heart. If I offended anyone with my approach I sincerely apologize. Anytime I sing the anthem it is an honor and my heart beats out of my chest. I did check my watch because I knew the stealth bomber would fly over 2 minutes in and I knew a started a little late. Being a part of the all star game was amazing and I look forward to the next time I can perform the anthem. Thanks y’all. Love ya.”

“Reading today’s tweets & see people making a big deal out of @LukeBryanOnline possibly reading lyrics to the national anthem,” Otto tweeted. “Let me just say anyone who’s got a problem with it has never had to sing the anthem in front of thousands while the thought of screwing up lands you on YouTube to be lambasted for all time. If he wrote it down he was smart. Think Christan Aguilera or countless other celebs who’ve wound up looking stupid for forgetting the words.”

Luke is set to perform in Central Park on Friday as part of “Good Morning America’s” Summer Concert Series.