Rihanna may be set to deliver the performance of the night during the Super Bowl halftime show, but she won’t be the only singer taking the stage on football’s biggest day.
The NFL announced Tuesday that country singer Chris Stapleton will sing the national anthem, while Abbott Elementary star Sheryl Lee Ralph will perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” which is often referred to as the Black national anthem.
Completing the pregame lineup at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on Feb. 12, R&B legend Babyface will perform "America the Beautiful.”
The three pregame songs will be performed by different American Sign Language interpreters. Oscar-winning CODA star Troy Kotsur will join Stapleton to sign “The Star-Spangled Banner” in ASL. Colin Denny will sign “America the Beautiful,” while Justina Miles will sign “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”
Ralph, who stars in Abbott Elementary on ABC, shared her excitement on Instagram. “Come on now. Don’t you ever give up on you baby! I’ll be singing Lift Every Voice and Sing at Super Bowl LVII,” the Emmy-winning actor wrote on Tuesday. “See you there.”
Babyface said he was “truly excited and honored” to be included among the Super Bowl performers in an Instagram post.
The upcoming NFC and AFC championship games on Jan. 29 will determine which two football teams will compete in the Super Bowl. The Philadelphia Eagles will take on the San Francisco 49ers for the NFC title, while the Kansas City Chiefs will battle the Cincinnati Bengals to be the AFC champions.
Now back to Rihanna: She has not announced which (if any) guest artists will be joining her onstage. Regardless, it is a highly anticipated event for the singer, who hasn’t released an album since 2016.