Feb 7, 2026 12:50pm PT Brandi Carlile on What It Means to Sing ‘America the Beautiful’ at the Super Bowl in a Time of Turmoil: It’s a Song of ‘Fragile Hope, for Where America Could Be’ She says, 'The through line to being queer and being a representative of a marginalized community, and being put on the largest stage in America to acknowledge the fraught and tender hope that this country is based on, it's something you don't say no to.' By Chris Willman Plus Icon Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic ChrisWillman Latest Brandi Carlile on What It Means to Sing ‘America the Beautiful’ at the Super Bowl in a Time of Turmoil: It’s a Song of ‘Fragile Hope, for Where America Could Be’ 10 minutes ago Singer Brantley Gilbert Defends TPUSA’s Alternative Halftime: ‘It’s Been More Than 20 Years Since a Country Artist Has Been Asked to Play the Super Bowl Halftime Show’ 4 hours ago Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong Implores ICE Agents to ‘Quit Your S—ty Jobs’ at Super Bowl Party, Says Trump ‘Will Drop You Like a Bad Habit… Come on This Side of the Line’ 5 hours ago See All No “Joke”: Brandi Carlile is one of the few vocalists out there with so powerhouse of a voice, she could almost be considered overqualified to sing “America the Beautiful.” That’s what she’ll be doing just prior to Super Bowl LX kicking off on Sunday, and although it is not always considered to be as demanding as its patriotic twin, “The Star Spangled Banner,” Carlile promises that she’ll be performing it at the upper end of her range, which may mean that this seemingly gentler song will have its own bombs bursting in air, musically speaking. Related Stories 'Melania' Review: Brett Ratner's First Lady Documentary Is a Cheeseball Infomercial of Staggering Inertia 'Give Me the Ball!' Review: Ferociously Entertaining Portrait of Billie Jean King as Athletic Superstar and Culture Hero What does it mean to her to be singing “America the Beautiful,” though, at a time where not everyone in the country is thinking beautiful thoughts about the state of the nation? Carlile has thought plenty about that, as you’d expect from someone with such a history of activism.
