Sheryl Lee Ralph Performs At Super Bowl 2023 | HuffPost Entertainment

Abbott Elementary star Sheryl Lee Ralph hit the Super Bowl stage for a powerful rendition of Lift Every Voice and Sing before kickoff.

The soaring performance comes on the 123rd anniversary of the first time the song was performed in public, on Feb. 12, 1900, when a choir of 500 schoolchildren at the segregated Stanton School in Jacksonville, Florida, performed it on former President Abraham Lincolns birthday, according to NAACP .

It is no coincidence that I will be singing the Black National Anthem ... on the same date it was first publicly performed 123 years ago, Ralph tweeted ahead of the performance. Happy Black History Month!

Often referred to as the Black national anthem, Lift Every Voice and Sing was written by the Stanton Schools principal, NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson, in 1900. His brother, John Rosamond Johnson, composed the music.

Ralph will only be the third performer to sing Lift Every Voice and Sing at the Super Bowl. The NFL added the song to its pregame show during the 2020 season following racial unrest in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd.

.@thesherylralph performs \"Lift Every Voice and Sing\" at the #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/Jm99hpir9M

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.@thesherylralph performs "Lift Every Voice and Sing" at the #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/Jm99hpir9M
The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) February 12, 2023

123 years ago today Lift Every Voice and Sing was performed publicly for the 1st time. Today I will sing it for the 1st time as part of the @SuperBowl pre game show in the stadium! pic.twitter.com/Mh805zQbX5

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123 years ago today Lift Every Voice and Sing was performed publicly for the 1st time. Today I will sing it for the 1st time as part of the @SuperBowl pre game show in the stadium! pic.twitter.com/Mh805zQbX5
sheryl lee ralph (@thesherylralph) February 12, 2023

Ralphs career has resurged following her Emmy-winnning portrayal of kindergarten teacher Barbara Howard on ABCs Abbott Elementary. Ralph, 66, landed the Emmy last year as a first-time nominee for best supporting actress in a comedy role. She brought down the house with her acceptance speech, in which she sang a few bars of Dianne Reeves Endangered Species and implored others to never give up on their dreams.

Someone wake me up from this dream! she wrote on Twitter last month of landing the Super Bowl gig .

Sundays performance was an opportunity for Ralph to show off her lesser-known musical chops. Prior to her television success, the actor was nominated for a Tony Award for her portrayal of Deena Jones in the hit Broadway musical Dreamgirls in 1981.

The Super Bowls other pregame performances included country music star Chris Stapleton, who sang the national anthem, and R&B legend Babyface, who performed America the Beautiful. Rihanna will make her long-awaited return to the stage for the halftime show.