Twitter was not kind to Nelly Furtado's rendition of "O Canada" at the NBA All-Star Game Sunday, as users shredded her unconventional take on the national anthem.
Furtado sang a nearly unrecognizable version of the song, while accompanied by a flute player, and seemed to totally ignore the traditional melody in favour of her own approach. The words were all there, but the notes were not, many said online.
Twitter reactions ranged from confusion, to embarrassment, to anger and disgust.
Nelly furtado's citizenship should be revoked for that performance.
— dem_crumblies (@dem_crumblies)
To all Americans watching that's not what our national anthem sounds like. I dunno what the hell was singing
— Justin Winger (@JustinWinger86)
We were all quickly reminded why doesn't have a career anymore #2016
— Emily Button (@emybutton)
Nelly Furtado butchering the Canadian National Anthem....
— Cam Dufour (@CJDuf4)
The American anthem in a Canadian city was epic. Then embarrasses an entire country.
— Steve (@60CarltonSt)
Poor Canada. This is awful.
— Laura Smith (@LuckyLMM)
Listening to Nelly Furtado sing the national anthem was like having hemorrhoids in your ears and a cat using them as a scratching post.
— Danko Jones (@dankojones)
Others gave the Victoria, B.C. native the benefit of the doubt.
Such a beautiful voice, looking lovely as ever, awesome rendition of O'Canada but I prefer the more traditional version.
— don't count me out, (@Macsleuth)
People need to get a grip over the anthem, I've heard a lot worse. So she tried something different with a boring song.
— Saltydawg (@Saltydawg)
Nelly Furtado did good in my opinion. What's the big deal?
— Tarone Hopkins (@RealTarone)
Furtado's performance wasn't the first time a musician botched the Canadian national anthem.
Burton Cummings delivered a bizarre rendition of "O Canada" at the 2012 Grey Cup in Toronto, singing to a percussion rhythm from his electric keyboard, and missing a few lines during the performance.
Canadian musician Tom Cochrane also flubbed the lines to the national anthem, when he sang it before Game 2 of the Toronto Blue Jays' World Series push in 1992.
But Canada hasn't had nearly as many famous flubs as the United States over the years. With all the high-profile sports events that go on south of the border, there have been many musicians who have tried (and failed) to put their own spins on the "Star Spangled Banner," often with hilarious results.
Christina Aguilera famously botched the "Star Spangled Banner" at the 2011 Super Bowl, flubbing a few of the lines while also adding several high notes at inappropriate points. Steven Tyler, Josh Groban and R. Kelly have also delivered some less-than-spectacular performances of the anthem over the years.