After Motown legend Martha Reeves, 85, went viral for her recent National Anthem performance, video of her critiquing her “out of tune” backup singers has now surfaced.
The R&B and Pop singer sang the “Star-Spangled Banner” at the inaugural Women’s Professional Baseball League (WPBL) game in Springfield, Illinois on Saturday (August 1).
The event not only made history as WPBL’s first game, but made its rounds online over the Motown icon’s performance with her two female backup singers. Their rendition left several social media users uncontrollably laughing and commenting on the apparent anthem fail.
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Martha Reeves Caught On Video Criticizing Backup Singers Before Viral National Anthem Performance
Since the incident, video has now surfaced of Reeves critiquing her backup singers before they stood on the field to perform live. TMZ obtained video of Reeves, formerly of Martha and the Vandellas, practicing the anthem in rehearsal.
At one point, Reeves stops her backup singers and scolds, “That’s out of tune.” She then demanded to know who was singing the same note as her. Then, she blasted the singers over the stadium’s microphone. She said, “I don’t think I need them. I don’t need them.”
Despite the rocky rehearsal and final performance, the backup singers claim they actually can carry a tune. They shared video of them singing the National Anthem at a hockey game before the WPBL game. They claimed the video shows they have no problem tunefully singing the nation’s anthem.
Meanwhile, Reeves told TMZ that the wet and windy weather on Saturday was to blame for her rocky performance, along with the lack of stage monitors to properly hear herself.
“Having just celebrated my 85th birthday, I’ve learned a great deal over more than 60 years of performing live. It was an incredible honor to be invited to perform at the inaugural Women’s Professional Baseball League event and to help celebrate such a historic moment for women in sports. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. The field conditions were wet and windy, and without stage monitors I wasn’t able to hear myself as I normally would. While it wasn’t the performance I had hoped for, I’m grateful to have been there in support of these remarkable athletes and this groundbreaking league.”
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