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Ledisi, who is a Grammy Award-winning singer cum songwriter, delivered her rendition of Lift Every Voice and Sing at the Super Bowl today, sparking a frenzy on social media.
Also known as the "Black national anthem", she took to the stage to sing to the masses at the Caesars Superdome ahead of the showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles. The song has long been contentious, given that some feel only the "real" national anthem should be sung at the beginning.
The history and significance of Lift Every Voice and Sing explored:
Lift Every Voice and Sing was written back in 1900, by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson.
“My thoughts began buzzing round a central idea of writing a poem about Lincoln but I couldn’t net them,” he wrote in his autobiography, Along This Way.
Instead, he segued into writing about the struggles of Black people. He asked his brother to help him compose the tunes for the hymn. In the end, he penned a song that reflected on the history of oppression with lyrics like “Stony the road we trod/ Bitter the chastening rod” and ending with a vow of resilience: “May we forever stand/ True to our God/ True to our native land.”
Per the official NAACP website, the hymn holds significance because it eloquently captured the solemn yet hopeful appeal for the liberty of Black Americans."
"Set against the religious invocation of God and the promise of freedom, the song was later adopted by NAACP and prominently used as a rallying cry during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s," the page reads.
The song first caught the attention of many in 2018, when Beyoncé sang it at Coachella. However, it has long been emblematic of Black culture and life, seeing as it is sung at church, political protests, graduations, and more.
As for what role the song plays in the NFL, it was first sung in 2020 as a way of ending the season, though fans were unhappy with it then as well. At the time, the song was performed ahead of every game, right before The Star Spangled Banner. The decision stemmed from an effort to reiterate the league's support for Black Lives Matter.
However, following the demise of George Floyd, who died at the hands of policemen, Lift Every Voice and Sing has been inset into several major events, such as NASCAR races. Joe Biden also once used it as part of his campaign proposals.
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On social media, fans are expressing their fury over Lift Every Voice and Sing being sung first in place of the national anthem, with some contending that this could be divisive.
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