Ingrid Andress kicked off the 2024 MLB Home Run Derby with a rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" that had everyone talking. The country music star and four-time Grammy-nominated singer's performance of the National Anthem live at Globe Life Field on Monday quickly sparked a reaction on social media moments after it was over. It was not a positive reaction, to say the least. Baseball fans and social media users who don't even watch baseball are still not done joking about it.
Andress, a somewhat new act in the country music scene, broke through with her single "More Hearts Than Mine" in 2019, which peaked at #30 on the Billboard Hot 100. She released her debut album Lady Like in September 2020 and followed up with Good Person in August 2022. She was an opening act on country music legend Keith Urban's The Speed of Now World Tour in 2022. Her father, Brad Andress, was a strength and conditioning coach for several professional baseball teams, including the Detroit Tigers, Colorado Rockies, and New York Mets.
Fans React To Ingrid Andress' National Anthem Performance
Of course, fans quickly compared Ingrid Andress's performance to Fergie's infamous showing at the 2018 NBA All-Star game. That rendition was so poorly received that players tried to hide their laughter. It sparked a variety of remixes and memes. When Fergie finally reflected on her performance, she explained that she "wanted to try something special for the NBA, but clearly [this] rendition didn’t strike the intended tone." Maybe Andress was trying something special for Major League Baseball with her performance on Monday evening.
As for Andress herself, she has not yet addressed the performance, or the internet's reaction to her performance. Earlier in the day, she announced a new single and two concerts for later in July. One in Nashville, Tennessee, and another in Denver, Colorado, her home state. Following her performance, she disabled comments on her Instagram page, likely to avoid seeing additional criticism. Musicians don't get nominated for four Grammy Awards for no reason, so it was likely an off day for Andress. Hopefully, she gets the chance to redeem herself in the future.