The Canadian singer who performed the American national anthem before an NFL game at the weekend has spoken out after her appearance ignited fury online.
Prior to Saturday’s clash between the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks in Santa Clara, Cassandra DiFruscio took center stage at Levi’s Stadium to sing The Star-Spangled Banner in the minutes leading up to kickoff.
DiFruscio, who currently lives in Nashville, originally hails from Niagara-on-the-Lake in Ontario, Canada.
And while her rendition received mixed reviews, fans were left seething that a Canadian was chosen to sing America’s anthem on such a big stage.
Days on from the performance in San Francisco, the 32-year-old has broken her silence and insisted she is ‘ready to keep going’ despite the backlash.
‘I’m just focused singing, and anthem performances can be emotional and subjective,’ she told Canadian television network CTV News. ‘I’m definitely not the first person that people criticize for the anthem.’
She added: ‘I am just excited to perform it more, to be honest, I am ready to keep going.’
DiFruscio, who says she started performing anthems at her older brother’s junior hockey games at the age of 14, has performed for a number of Toronto sports teams, including the MLB’s Blue Jays, NBA’s Raptors and NHL’s Maple Leafs.
And while the online reaction wasn’t too kind, her rendition was met with huge cheers at Levi’s Stadium, while the 49ers organization were extremely hospitable behind the scenes.
‘They really, really were supportive,’ she stressed.
DiFruscio has also performed the anthem at various NBA playoff games, and Saturday night’s showdown between the 49ers and Seahawks had major playoff implications.
Seattle’s 13-3 victory in Santa Clara handed them the No. 1 seed in the NFC, ensuring they get a bye week and homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.
