'Skyscraper' singer spends time with MTV News at Texas Rangers' stadium before nailing the song at Game 5. By Gil Kaufman, with reporting by Matt Elias
Demi Lovato sings the National Anthem prior to Game Five of the 2011 World Series Photo: MLB/Getty
Demi Lovato had a lot to celebrate on Monday night. Not only did the Texas native nail the "Star Spangled Banner" to open Game 5 of the World Series, she did it in Arlington, Texas, on a night when the Texas Rangers beat the St. Louis Cardinals to take a 3-2 lead in the fall classic.
Wearing a red Rangers jersey with a short black leather skirt and a black blazer, Lovato shook off the butterflies she was feeling earlier in the day, when she tweeted she was "so nervous/excited about tomorrow!" and did her best.
As it turns out, the19-year-old "Skyscraper" star had nothing to fear, as she confidently performed the notoriously tricky song with a touch of soul and some impressive high runs. As a bonus, unlike some notorious anthem flubs in the past, Lovato not only hit her notes, but got all the words right as well.
"The rush of going out there ... nothing compares to it. I feel like I'm about to jump out of a plane," Lovato said before her big moment, while chilling off-field with her family at the stadium. MTV News hung out with Lovato before she walked out and she told us that the sound check had gone well but she was still feeling uneasy about her opening gig. "I can't imagine how nervous I'm going to be in 15 minutes," she said, thrilled that she hadn't forgotten any of the lyrics in her first run-through.
"Getting to do this in my hometown of Dallas, Texas, is such a dream come true, because I've been to these Rangers games many times. I've sat in the nosebleed sections where you can barely see anything and now I'm going to be singing on the field," she continued. "That to me is such a dream come true and it represents my journey and how far I've come. I just feel so blessed and so thankful and so honored." She was feeling so grateful in fact, that she offered a prayer beforehand in which she thanked her fans and asked for strong vocals while praising the opportunity to sing the National Anthem.
"It's a different environment from my shows; there are people that come there to see me," she said. "Here, they are coming here to see baseball and I am actually just singing the National Anthem. So it's kind of more pressure for me to do good because I want to impress people that didn't come here to see me and I also want to impress people with a song they've heard a million, kajillion times. ... If anything, to be able to step up in front of 51,000 people is going to be incredible."
Lovato followed in the footsteps of "American Idol" winner Scotty McCreery and "New Girl" star Zooey Deschanel, who have both lent their vocals to earlier World Series games.
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