Clay Aiken Sang With Conviction

American League champion Boston Red Sox and the National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers began the 2018 Baseball World Series on Tuesday night at Fenway Park.  This is baseball’s 114th Fall Classic.

At the end of the game, The Red Sox beat the Dodgers, 8-4, in Game 1 of the 2018 World Series.


Every time I think of the World Series, I think of the 2003 season and the excitement of seeing Clay Aiken sing the National Anthem.

The Star-Spangled Banner is traditionally performed at the beginning of public sports events and orchestral concerts in the United States, as well as other public gatherings.

I am a musician and I have played or sung the Star Spangled Banner more times than I can imagine. The song is notoriously difficult for nonprofessional and professionals to sing, mainly because of its wide range which is an octave and a half.

Sometimes I was nervous when I had to perform the very difficult song. However, throughout my career, I do not think I was ever as nervous as I was on October 18, 2003.

Like many of Clay Aiken’s fans, I was excited to hear the news that he was asked to perform the Star-Spangled Banner at the opening of the World Series in 2003. Held at Yankee Stadium in New York, the Yankees were playing the Florida Marlins for the National Championship.

There was no reason to be nervous. Clay sang a wonderful rendition of the anthem and it was done with just Clay’s voice….no accompaniment. Clay sang with conviction and only hesitated for a second when the Stealth Bomber showed up a few seconds too soon. Using common sense, Clay stopped the song for a few moments so that the ending could be heard.

 

It was an exciting time for Clay Aiken fans. I would imagine it is a moment that Clay will never forget.

Did you see Clay sing the Star Spangled Banner at the World Series in 2003?

 

 

Clay Aiken News Network is an unofficial fansite. We are not affiliated in any way with Clay Aiken or his management. This website was made by fans for fans and makes no impression or impersonation of the official site, which can be found under the domain clayaiken.com.

4 thoughts on “Clay Aiken Sang With Conviction

  1. A very exciting event for Clay and all of his fans – I did watch and have it taped! It was a thrill to hear Clay sing it so perfectly!

    Thanks for bringing the memory back!

  2. What a beautiful rendition of this song! I love how Clay honored and paused for the Stealth Bombers to fly over the stadium! The ending of the song was overwhelming!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.