Who is singing the national anthem at Super Bowl 60? It’s Charlie Puth

Charlie Puth just earned the honor of performing the national anthem at Super Bowl 60 tonight. The pop star will sing the “Star-Spangled Banner” before kickoff at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. He called this moment one of the hardest challenges of his career.

How Charlie Puth Got This Massive Opportunity

Charlie Puth said he actively pursued this role after years of wanting it. He recorded a demo featuring just his voice and a Rhodes piano, then sent it directly to Roc Nation. According to Puth, Jay-Z loved it and passed it along to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. They approved him immediately. “I’ve been told this, I don’t know if it’s true, but he played it for Jay-Z and Jay-Z loved it,” Puth told Rolling Stone recently.

The 34-year-old musician understands the immense pressure. He knows that “The Star-Spangled Banner” is one of the most difficult songs ever written. Unlike typical songs with a one-octave range, this anthem spans from a low D to a high A. That’s an unusual and challenging jump for any vocalist.

Who is Charlie Puth and What Makes Him Special

Puth grew up in Rumson, New Jersey, down the street from rock legends Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi. His mother was a music teacher and his father a builder. He possesses perfect pitch, or absolute pitch, a rare ability to identify or recreate any musical note by ear. In his own words, at age ten he thought everyone could just listen to records and play them back by hearing alone. He quickly realized he had a gift.

Puth rose to fame through YouTube covers and was discovered by Ellen DeGeneres in 2011 when performing “Someone Like You” with Emily Luther. His debut single came in 2015 with “Marvin Gaye” featuring Meghan Trainor. He then co-wrote and produced the global hit “See You Again” with Wiz Khalifa, a tribute to Paul Walker. Other chart successes include “Attention,” “We Don’t Talk Anymore,” and “See You Again”.

Why This Song Is So Difficult to Master

In a social media video posted in November, Puth explained the extreme vocal demands of the national anthem. Most pop songs operate within a comfortable one-octave range, but “The Star-Spangled Banner” requires singers to reach from the lowest notes to the highest in their range. The technical difficulty is why only elite vocalists have performed it at the Super Bowl historically.

Puth shows deep respect for those who sang before him. “I’m going to be inspired by what Whitney did, but I can’t ever touch what Whitney did,” he said about the legendary 1991 performance. He also praised Chris Stapleton’s 2023 rendition as one of the best ever recorded. Puth called “The Star-Spangled Banner” “one of the most beautiful pieces of music” but also acknowledged it as “the hardest to sing.”

Detail	Information
Artist Name	Charlie Puth
Age	34 years old
Home State	New Jersey (Rumson native)
Special Ability	Perfect or absolute pitch

“I actually have always wanted to do this, and I recorded a little demo, just me singing with the Rhodes and sent it to Roc Nation. I’ve been told Jay-Z loved it, and it got to Goodell and they all said that I could do it.”

— Charlie Puth, Singer and Grammy-Nominated Artist

A Legacy of Super Bowl National Anthem Performers

Puth will be only the second New Jersey native to perform the national anthem at the Super Bowl. Whitney Houston‘s legendary 1991 performance set an incredibly high bar. Other iconic performers include Luther Vandross (1997), Cher (1999), Beyoncé (2004), Billy Joel (2007), Christina Aguilera (2011), and Lady Gaga (2016). More recently, Reba McEntire performed in 2024 and Jon Batiste took the stage in 2025.

National anthem performances vary widely in length. Alicia Keys holds the record at 2 minutes and 36 seconds during Super Bowl XLVII in 2013. The shortest was Neil Diamond at 1 minute and 2 seconds in 1987. Most performances fall between one and two minutes. Sports betting sites have set betting lines on how long Puth’s rendition will take, with the over-under at around 120.5 seconds.

What Makes Tonight’s Performance Different from Other Career Moments?

Puth has accomplished much already as a songwriter, producer, and recording artist. He earned credits on massive hits including “Stay” (Justin Bieber and The Kid LAROI), “Celebrate” (Pitbull), “Slow Motion” (Trey Songz), and “Lips on You” (Maroon 5). During the COVID pandemic, he became “Professor Puth” on TikTok, educating viewers about his songwriting process and music theory. His third album received a Grammy nomination for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Yet singing the national anthem at the Super Bowl stands apart as a once-in-a-lifetime career peak.

The NFL and Roc Nation partnership, which began in 2019, carefully selects national anthem performers. Beyond the anthem, tonight’s ceremony features Brandi Carlile singing “America the Beautiful” and Coco Jones performing “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” The halftime show will showcase Bad Bunny, making histories as the first solo Latino and Spanish-speaking artist to headline. Will tonight solidify Charlie Puth as one of the greatest national anthem performers in Super Bowl history?

Sources

• CBS News – Comprehensive biography and quote verification about Charlie Puth’s perfect pitch and vocal range explanation
• USA Today – Details on his career origins, YouTube discovery, and Super Bowl selection process
• Rolling Stone – Direct quotes from Charlie Puth interview about demo submission and Jay-Z approval