There were quite a few people who were disappointed in Fergie's performance of the National Anthem at the NBA All-Star game at the Staples Center. Regarding the quality of her performance, it is only fair to compare Fergie to herself. It was a live performance that stuck to the tradition of being sung mostly acapella with light instrumentation. Perhaps people who have not really listened to Fergie's voice before are finally hearing what her voice sounds like without booming bass tracks, dancing, and a light show. It is true that the pop singer chose unconventional vowel sounds to make her performance more unique.

To be technical, Fergie produced a lot of nasal sounds and prevented the sound from fully expanding with her tongue. The shape of your mouth and the placement of your tongue is going to determine how your voice projects, whether you're speaking or singing. Her vibrato was shaky and artificial but she managed to pull through the performance with a smile.

Her vocal dynamics were surprisingly different, described by many viewers as a jazz take on the national anthem. Many people had a lot to say about her performance, from the average Twitter user to vocal coaches, to comedians.

Mike Freeman, an NFL columnist, commented that her “anthem was trash." Anchor for ESPN Jemele Hill commented that Draymond Green's face expressed the way that everyone felt about her performance.

Maybe Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal had the most humorous banter. Just as Fergie brought her jazz-inspired rendition to a close, O’Neal said, “Fergie, I love you. It was different, it was sexy." Barkley responded by saying, “Damn right it was different. I’m gonna need a cigarette after that one.” O’Neal attempted to get Barkley to pipe down his commentary by saying, “Leave her alone."

Of course, Fergie commented on her own performance, stating that she tried something special for the NBA.

The singer even admitted that her take on the national anthem didn't have the right tone. She added that she loves the country and she tried her best. Mariah Carey spoke about the show and was very supportive of the fellow singer. When asked about the pop singer’s jazz rendition, Carey abruptly said, “Darling, nobody needs to listen to that.”

The performance caused a slew of mixed emotions centered around Fergie's talent.

Rapper and musician Takeoff was more supportive, saying that Fergie gave a hell of a performance and he loved it. Ironically, Fergie recently began hosting a singing competition called "The Four" on Fox. Overall, it seems that this risk-taking eight-time Grammy-award winner had a bad day at work.
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