Reba McEntire takes fans’ lead, sings ‘Star Spangled Banner’ at Caesars

Reba McEntire had not planned to sing “The Star Spangled Banner” on the Las Vegas Strip on Saturday night. But she hadn’t planned on stopping her show for a technical problem, either.

During the final Reba and Brooks & Dunn performance of the year at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, McEntire paused between songs as her in-ear monitors cut out. Simply, as she told the full house, she was unable to hear her own voice.

So @reba stretches a break in the action for technical issues my mentioning she sang at the @LasVegasNFR I. 1974. Then, this ... pic.twitter.com/3Pue4AYgHV

— John Katsilometes (@johnnykats) December 15, 2019

McEntire was given the “stretch” hand signal, indicating the crew would need a few moments to restore her sound. She mentioned the National Finals Rodeo, which also wrapped its stay in Las Vegas on Saturday. “I sang the National Anthem at the NFR in 1974 …,” she started.

A few fans near the stage shouted, “Sing it!” McEntire smiled, paused, then started in … “Oh, say can you see!” The crowd stood and sang along, with many Vegas locals shouting “Knights!” at “Gave proof through the night.”

At the end, Kix Brooks said, “Other than the NFR, this is probably the only show in Las Vegas tonight where you hear the national anthem.” The song’s a hit, and we know the words.

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His PodKats podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.