With the recent fiasco during the Super Bowl regarding Christina Aguilera's rendition of the National Anthem where she couldn't get the words straight, I thought I'd regurgitate my problem with what goes before every home game at the Baltimore Ravens M&T Bank Stadium.
Misheal Miller is a local pastor and sings the National Anthem before every home game of the Baltimore Ravens. In fact, I believe he has done this at absolutely every game the Ravens have played in Baltimore, at least at M&T Bank Stadium. He recently sung the Anthem in Annapolis for the Induction Ceremony for the re-election of Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley.
Miller has an amazing voice, strong and confident, which should make everyone proud of the classic way he belts out the song compared to so many people who try to put their own spin on it and either miss words, phrases cannot hit the notes or just plain flub it.
However, the problem I have with this is that while he does a great job at it, why can't the team bring in someone else to sing it every now and then? There are so many local, much less national celebrities who would love the opportunity to get up in front of 70,000 patriotic fans and sing the most famous song in the USA. I cannot understand why other teams in every sport do this, yet the Ravens choose to stubbornly stick with the same guy at every game, year after year. It is not a job, it is not a right, for any one, single person to have this honor. Mind you, this is absolutely an honor and it should be turn into a position within the game-day experience.
The Baltimore Ravens need to expand their minds and open their creative thoughts to bring in some new people to give the fans a taste of the wonderful talents out there, both in the Baltimore, Maryland area as well as on a national level, to add to the already wonderful flavor that Mr. Miller brings to the fans on gameday at M&T Bank Stadium in the singing of the National Anthem.