Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson delivered a powerful a cappella rendition of the U.S. national anthem on Sunday, September 14, ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers NFL home opener. The high-pressure performance was a challenge the legendary British singer had candidly admitted he had “never done before in my f***ing life,” and for which he had cleverly used his own solo concert in Boston just days earlier as a public rehearsal. You can watch the performance down below.
The story behind the celebrated performance began on stage at the House Of Blues in Boston on September 11. There, Dickinson paused his own solo show to let the audience in on a “dirty little secret” and ask for their permission to practice.
“I’ve been asked to sing the American national anthem at a Pittsburgh Steelers game,” he told the Boston crowd. “Now, I’ve never done this before in my f***ing life, and I’m trying to avoid the embarrassment of reading the f***ing words off the back of my hand… there is no auto cue, all right?!”
He explained that he chose that night to practice because of its significance. “It can’t have escaped your attention that today is 9/11, right? And on this day, on that day, I was in New York City and I witnessed all the s**t that happened,” he said. He also shared some practical advice he’d received from his punk rock friends. “I was talking to the punk band, mates of mine, Bad Religion. And the guy went, ‘Oh, you’re gonna sing the anthem?’ He said, ‘F***ing make sure you start low.'”
On Sunday, Dickinson made good on his promise, stepping onto the field at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh to sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” unaccompanied before the game against the Seattle Seahawks. He had first revealed the secret engagement in an earlier interview, stating: “I’m going to do it a cappella and stuff, and as long as you start at the right place, you’re good to go.”
