Latin-R&B singer Nezza made a stand at Saturday’s Los Angeles Dodgers game, singing “The Star Spangled Banner” in Spanish, even though she said she had been warned not to, going into the performance.
A video posted by the singer on TikTok shows a Dodgers rep telling her the performance will need to be in English — cutting right to footage of the end of her National Anthem en espanol, which appears to be enthusiastically received in the ballpark
Nezza’s original TikTok post about her Spanish-language rendering, which had more than 4 million views as of Sunday afternoon, was captioned: “Watch the Dodgers tell me I can’t sing the Spanish ‘Star Spangled Banner that Roosevelt literally commissioned in 1945… So I did it anyway.”
It includes a shot of the singer, who was wearing a Dominican Republic jersey, smiling before a friendly-sounding rep informs her, “We are gonna do the song in English today. I’m not sure if that wasn’t relayed.” Nezza’s smile immediately evaporates upon hearing this, and the video cuts off before registering any verbal reply.
In a subsequent, tearful TikTok post on Saturday night, Nezza said, “Safe to say I’m never allowed in that stadium ever again.” On Sunday, though, the Dodgers suggested to the Los Angeles Times that there were no hard feelings, telling a reporter on background that “there were no consequences from the club regarding the performance and that Nezza would be welcome back at the stadium in the future.
@babynezzapara mi gente ❤️ i stand with you♬ original sound – nezz
In her Saturday night video, Nezza — who is laughing at the start of the clip and wiping away tears by end — explained her intentions. “Bear with me ’cause I’m still very shaken up and emotional,” she said, reiterating that her version is part of the government-authorized history of the anthem in the U.S. “You can Google it, (but) I’ll just read it to you really quick: ‘It was officially commissioned in 1945 by the U.S. State Department as a part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s good neighbor policy to foster a better relationship with Latin America.”
She continued, “Because of this, I didn’t think I would be met with any sort of, like, no, especially because we’re in L.A., and with everything happening. And I’ve sung the national anthem (in English) many times in my life, but … today out of all days I could not, I’m sorry.
“I just could not believe when she walked in and told me no. I just felt like I needed to do it. For anyone who’s been following me for a while, you know everything I do is out of love,” she continued. “And I am proud of myself for doing that today. Because my parents are immigrants and they’ve been citizens my whole life at this point. They got documented really early, but I just can’t imagine them being ripped away from me, just even at this age, let alone (as) a little kid. What are we doing?”
@babynezzai love you guys stay safe out there
“Anyways, sorry, this is a whole different side of me that y’all never see,” Nezza said, wiping her eyes with a tissue. “But thank you for all the sweet messages. … Safe to say I’m never allowed in that stadium ever again. But I love you guys so much.”
Most recently, Nezza sang an English version of “The Star Spangled Banner” at an A’s game in her native Bay Area on June 3, which may be where the Dodgers learned of her ability to nail the anthem.
The singer-songwriter dancer is of Colombian-Dominican origin, and grew up in the Bay Area, graduating from Santa Clara High before moving to L.A. to pursue music. In October 2021, she released her debut EP, “Club Solita.” She has recorded much of her music in English, although her most popular Spotify track, by far, is “Corazon Frio.” She has been working on a debut album, preceded by a new single, “Classy,” that came out June 6 on the Plush label.
The Dodgers have been under fire in some quarters for not taking a stand on the ICE raids. L.A. Times sports columnist Dylan Hernández sparked controversy with a column bearing the headline “Cowardly Dodgers remain silent as ICE raids terrorize their fans.” Wrote the columnist, “The Dodgers boast that more than 40% of their fan base is Latino, but they can’t even be bothered to offer the shaken community any words of comfort.”
Although the extreme crackdown on immigrants has been wildly unpopular in the L.A. area, the Dodgers organization was never likely to speak up about it, given the team’s historical determination to remain strictly apolitical. The team may have become further wary still of any controversy after being criticized from all ends of the spectrum in 2023 for its handling of a satirical, religiously themed drag squad being invited, uninvited and then re-invited to be honored at a Pride night in 2023.
Last week, as tensions flared in the city, team manager Dave Roberts said, “I just hope that we can be a positive distraction for what people are going through in Los Angeles right now.” Later in the week he responded to a reporter’s inquiry by saying that he had not “dug enough and can’t speak intelligently on it.”
However, popular team member Kike Hernandez felt emboldened to post about the unrest on his Instagram page, in both Spanish and English. “I may not be Born & Raised, but this city adopted me as one of their own,” he said. “I am saddened and infuriated by what’s happening in our country and our city. Los Angeles and Dodger fans have welcomed me, supported me and shown me nothing but kindness and love. This is my second home. And I cannot stand to see our community being violated, profiled, abused and ripped apart. ALL people deserve to be treated with respect, dignity and human rights.” He signed off with the hashtag “#CityOfImmigrants.”
