The 'American Idol' knocked it out of the park, singing the song in his own style
Listen to Phillip Phillips on iHeartRadio
(Yahoo!) - "American Idol" champion Phillip Phillips may not have the big, belty, booming voice usually associated with the National Anthem--that's usually the domain of his Season 11 co-stars, Jessica Sanchez and Joshua Ledet. In fact, he actually once told Yahoo!'s Reality Rocks that he'd never want to try and tackle the tricky "Star-Spangled Banner," because, as he often humbly likes to say, he's "not that good a singer." But of course, an all-American boy like P-Squared could not turn down an opportunity to perform the Anthem at the opening game of the 2012 World Series, which took place this Wednesday.
Although Phillip had never performed the iconic song publicly before, and he was performing it for a massive television audience that literally made "Idol's" viewing audience look positively minor league, the guy knocked it out of the park (and he stayed on the melody, in case you were wondering.) And he did the song in his own style, staying true to himself, just like he always did with his cover tunes on "Idol."
Standing unassumingly on the grass of San Francisco's AT&T Park this Wednesday evening before game one, Phillip thankfully eschewed the blustery theatrics and superfluous runs that have long become "Banner" clichés (as well as "Idol" clichés, come to think of it). Instead, he simply strapped on his trusty acoustic guitar and strummed a stripped-down version that, as ex-"Idol" judge Steven Tyler might say, was beautiful, simply beautiful. To borrow another Tylerism, he basically "Phillip Phillips'd" the Anthem, and that was exactly the right approach.
