New Orleans flair lights up national anthem at men's NCAA Tournament final
With the Final Four being played in New Orleans, the national anthem preceding the men's NCAA Tournament final between No. 1 Kansas and No. 8 North Carolina had a Big Easy flair.
Cued in by the notes of a trumpet, Tarriona "Tank" Ball performed the silky, upbeat vocals to "The Star-Spangled Banner" with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band playing behind her in a funky two-minute rendition.
Ball fronts the New Orleans-based band "Tank and the Bangas," which was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2020 Grammy Awards and won the 2017 NPR Tiny Desk Contest. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band is a renowned group formed in the early 1960s.
.@preshallband brings some NOLA flair to the National Anthem for the #NationalChampionship 👏 pic.twitter.com/AdOtZ3wcrv
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) April 5, 2022
The performance received rave reviews on social media with calls for the groups to do the anthem before all major sporting events.
This anthem is so New Orleans, man. Tank and Preservation Hall Jazz Band, I love it.
— Evan Barnes〽️ (@evan_b) April 5, 2022
Whoever is doing the anthem at the men’s title game, you are allowed - and encouraged - to do it anytime.
— Nancy Armour (@nrarmour) April 5, 2022
If that national anthem surprised you — you should see how they do funerals.
New Orleans is awesome. 🎷🎭🎺🎉🍾— Griffin Hardy (@GriffinHardyWX) April 5, 2022
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NCAA Tournament final features anthem with Big Easy flair
