Ingrid Andress received harsh criticism online after performing the National Anthem at the Home Run Derby on Monday.
Ingrid Andress' attention-grabbing performance of the national anthem has sparked a social media dialogue -- but perhaps not for the reason she may have hoped.
The 32-year-old country star has gone viral following Monday's Home Run Derby at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, where she performed a stripped-down rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner." Viewers were quick to compare the performance to Fergie's controversial 2018 version.
"My ears are bleeding," one user on X (formerly Twitter) declared. Another joked, "Fergie seeing Ingrid Andress dethrone her for worst National Anthem performance."
Multiple others cracked, "Fergie watching Ingrid Andress claim her crown for worst anthem of all time."
Comparisons were also drawn to Maya Rudolph's 2006 Saturday Night Live sketch in which she plays a contest winner who butchers the song.
Andress spoke out about the incident on Tuesday, saying that she was "drunk" and would be entering rehab.
"I'm not gonna bulls**t y'all, I was drunk last night," she wrote in a statement on Instagram. "I'm checking myself into a facility today to get the help I need. That was not me last night. I apologize to MLB, all the fans, and this country I love so much for that rendition. I'll let y'all know how rehab is I hear it's super fun."
ET has learned Ingrid's shows in Nashville and Denver have been cancelled and venues connected with ticket buyers directly about refunds. There is currently no change to the Aug. 3 show or Oct. 4 show.
She was quick to receive support from a number of artists, including Carly Pearce, Hillary Scott, and Julia Michaels.
"Love you girl," Michaels wrote. "I'm sorry you're going through this. And I'm sorry the world can be so cruel. Here for you xx."
Prior to her statement, Andress received shows of support from fellow country stars Brothers Osborne, who took to social media to provide some context for what may have happened behind the scenes.
"I know everyone is here for laughs but as someone who has seen her sing many times live, she is incredibly talented," reads a comment from the Brothers Osborne's official Instagram account. "Not sure what happened here but I'd bet the farm there were huge technical problems with her monitors."
Breland also came to Andress' defense, writing, "I'd just like to remind everyone that @ingridandress is an amazing vocalist who I've enjoyed singing with every time I've had the opportunity. That is all ✌🏾."
Others provided an alternate explanation for what could have occurred. "ACTUALLY SHE'S A GOOD SINGER. They used Autotune set to the WRONG musical SCALE, and it is pushing all right notes to the wrong notes," commented Danny Rose Murillo from the band Hollywood Undead.
Another Instagram user, Sean Glass, also shared his theory, writing, "As an Audio Engineer, it sounds like they placed Autotune in the signal chain before it hit the speakers and set to the wrong Key. There's a chance they wanted to safe guard her from going out of key and they prob sent it wrong."
Andress is a four-time GRAMMY nominee whose breakthrough single, 2019's "More Hearts Than Mine," went double platinum. The following year, she made headlines for her emotionally-charged performance of the song at the CMA Awards.
Her other hits include 2020's "Lady Like" and 2021's "Wishful Drinking" featuring Sam Hunt.
Earlier on Monday, Andress announced the upcoming release of her next single.
"Greetings to everyone that has a pulse. I truly love you all so much. I've been absent for a minute, but I’m so stoked to announce that my new single 'Colorado 9' comes out on July 24th," she shared on Instagram.
"To celebrate, I’m playing two very special shows, one in Nashville, this Wednesday, July 17th, at Row One, and one in Denver on Wednesday, July 24th, at Globe Hall," she added. "Thank you for being here for me even though I’ve been living under a rock. Y’all are the best and I can’t wait to see you at my shows (stay tuned for more show announcements soon)."
Back in 2021, Andress opened up to ET about being "proud to represent Nashville and country music" at the GRAMMY Awards as the only nominee from the genre in the top categories.
See the interview below.
RELATED CONTENT:
