YouTube star Conan Gray butchers ‘Star-Spangled Banner’

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Conan Gray did not impress anyone who heard his performance of the U.S. national anthem before Monday night’s MLB Home Run Derby.

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The pop star, who first became famous as a singer-songwriter on social media, had baseball fans — and anyone with working ears — cringing during his rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner.

Admittedly, it’s not the worst. The 23-year-old comes off a little flat in areas but nothing like Fergie’s warbling at the 2018 NBA All-Star Game.

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But the reaction was fast and furious, with Twitter lighting up with questions as to who Gray is, and who asked him to perform.

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“Fergie watching people call Conan Gray’s performance the worst national anthem rendition,” one person tweeted, with a meme of The Boys’ Homelander laughing with relief.

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“Who the hell is Conan Gray and why did he agree to do this?” asked one person, while another concurred, commenting, “I don’t know who TF Conan Gray is but that was top 5 worst national anthem renditions I’ve ever heard.”

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A third person tweeted, “Me after listening to Conan Gray’s rendition of the national anthem #HRDerby, accompanying of photo of Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson with blood dripping down his ear.

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Canadian sports reporter Michael Leach added: “I was slightly annoyed that O Canada was not sung even though there are no Blue Jays in the #HomeRunDerby… Then I heard Conan Gray butcher the Star Spangled Banner and I’m ok that MLB skipped us.”

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Not to be discounted, many thought Gray did just fine, with his legion of fans defending his “vocal range,” which simply “isn’t suited” for the anthem.

Gray has 4.71 million YouTube subscribers, nearly six million followers on TikTok, and has 21 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

Article content

Conan Gray did not impress anyone who heard his performance of the U.S. national anthem before Monday night’s MLB Home Run Derby.

Article content

The pop star, who first became famous as a singer-songwriter on social media, had baseball fans — and anyone with working ears — cringing during his rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner.

Admittedly, it’s not the worst. The 23-year-old comes off a little flat in areas but nothing like Fergie’s warbling at the 2018 NBA All-Star Game.

Article content

But the reaction was fast and furious, with Twitter lighting up with questions as to who Gray is, and who asked him to perform.

Article content

“Fergie watching people call Conan Gray’s performance the worst national anthem rendition,” one person tweeted, with a meme of The Boys’ Homelander laughing with relief.

Article content

“Who the hell is Conan Gray and why did he agree to do this?” asked one person, while another concurred, commenting, “I don’t know who TF Conan Gray is but that was top 5 worst national anthem renditions I’ve ever heard.”

Article content

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A third person tweeted, “Me after listening to Conan Gray’s rendition of the national anthem #HRDerby, accompanying of photo of Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson with blood dripping down his ear.

Article content

Canadian sports reporter Michael Leach added: “I was slightly annoyed that O Canada was not sung even though there are no Blue Jays in the #HomeRunDerby… Then I heard Conan Gray butcher the Star Spangled Banner and I’m ok that MLB skipped us.”

Article content

Not to be discounted, many thought Gray did just fine, with his legion of fans defending his “vocal range,” which simply “isn’t suited” for the anthem.

Gray has 4.71 million YouTube subscribers, nearly six million followers on TikTok, and has 21 million monthly listeners on Spotify.