Patti LaBelle had one of the biggest honors of the night before the MLB All-Star Game. She also ended up delivering one of its most talked-about moments.
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The legendary singer performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" Tuesday night at Philadelphia's Citizens Bank Park before the first pitch of the Midsummer Classic, putting her own signature spin on the national anthem in front of the hometown crowd.
LaBelle, 82, stretched several notes and appeared to briefly lose a couple of lyrics before finishing to a standing ovation inside the stadium.
Online, however, the reaction was anything but unanimous.
As clips of the performance spread across social media, fans quickly began debating whether the rendition was memorable for the right reasons.
Some viewers criticized LaBelle for adding vocal runs to the anthem, with a number of posts calling the performance disappointing and arguing that the song should be performed traditionally.
Others came to the Grammy-winning singer's defense.
Patti LaBelle delivers an incredible performance of the national anthem ahead of the 2026 #AllStarGame 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/GwIxWG3Pk8
— MLB (@MLB) July 15, 2026
Supporters pointed to LaBelle's Hall of Fame career, saying the music icon has more than earned the right to perform the anthem in her own style. Some also noted that performing live in front of tens of thousands of fans is no easy task, regardless of experience.
The anthem wasn't the only musical performance before the All-Star Game.
Jennifer Hudson also took the field and earned widespread praise for her rendition of "America the Beautiful," with many fans applauding her powerful vocals ahead of first pitch.
Whether fans loved LaBelle's performance or didn't care for it, one thing is clear: it had baseball fans talking long before the first pitch was thrown.
