Tasha Cobbs Leonard to sing 'Lift Every Voice and Sing,' Coco Jones to sing 'The Star-Spangled Banner'
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Grammy Award-winning artist Tasha Cobbs Leonard was tapped to sing "Lift Every Voice and Sing" at Arrowhead Stadium on Thursday night before the Kansas City Chiefs play the Baltimore Ravens.
Cobbs Leonard won the Grammy Award for Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance in 2014 and has been the recipient of three Billboard Music Awards over the course of her career.
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Tasha Cobbs Leonard performs on the Vibes Stage on the fourth day of CMA Fest in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, June 11, 2023. (Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK)
The announcement that the song was being performed before the start of the game drew the same kind of scrutiny as it has in the past. NFL teams started to have the song, also known as the Black national anthem, in 2020 after a summer of racial unrest in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd.
The song has been performed before the Super Bowl each year since. The response online has been fierce in both directions. Fans have routinely spoken out about the song being played, while some have criticized fans for not standing during the moment.
On Thursday, it was more of the same.
(Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports)
Grammy Award winner, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, will perform Lift Every Voice at this Thursday's home opener. pic.twitter.com/06GwtppPTq
— GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium (@GEHAField) September 3, 2024
Anti American and divisive.
— Truth is Freedom🇺🇸 (@Ken_Bobo_Dub) September 4, 2024
Stop making up things to divide everyone. What a stain on our great history.
All I hear is, “God, you can blow my mind! He sang back to me and said I’m about to do it!” 🙌🏾🙌🏾 https://t.co/jVBsDlnQSN
— Shony Shon (@ShonyShon) September 4, 2024
OH SHE ABOUT TO TAKE YALL TO THE CHURCH https://t.co/rm9dBO3bo8
— Jada🖤 (@jadasinterlude) September 4, 2024
As a black man why do we do this song at games https://t.co/qZXQr90KhG
— Marcus Williams SZN(2.0) (@ryrock23_) September 4, 2024
🤦🏾♂️trying to turn arrowhead into mass black church for no good reason. Just making folks uncomfortable. That’s it. https://t.co/Kccsdi0MuB
— Mancave 🏔️ (@ChiefsNCrypto2) September 3, 2024
Cobbs Leonard implored her fans to tune into her performance as "we celebrate unity, culture and the thrill of the game."
"I’m beyond excited to kick off the NFL season with a powerful live performance of ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’ at the Chiefs vs. Ravens game in Kansas City! This will be a night to remember—football, music, and an electric atmosphere," she wrote on Instagram.
Coco Jones will sing the national anthem for the game. The R&B singer won a Grammy Award this year for Best R&B Performance.
(Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports)
The Chiefs and Ravens start the NFL season at 8:20 p.m. ET.
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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.
