"In hindsight, trying to work in the words ‘my humps my humps, my lovely lady lumps’ may have been a mistake."
Jimmy Kimmel has a humorous explanation as to why he was smirking during Fergie's performance of the National Anthem at the 67th NBA All-Star Game over the weekend.
The 50-year-old comedian attended the game with his 24-year-old son, Kevin, and had no idea that the cameras had cut to him while the pop star was singing the "Star-Spangled Banner," which was written by Francis Scott Key in 1814.
"I feel like I need to address something that happened Sunday night at the NBA All-Star Game I was at the game with my son Kevin and, somehow, I became a part of a National Anthem fiasco," he said during his opening monologue on Tuesday's Jimmy Kimmel Live. "Fergie gave an unusually sultry version of our National Anthem."
Defending his reaction to Fergie's performance, Kimmel joked, "I just want to say that the reason I was smiling is because I love the National Anthem."
The late-night host admitted, "I didn’t realize I was on camera, but then my phone started just buzzing with text after text and I was like ‘Oh, I think I might have been on camera.'"
Kimmel also made light of the former Black Eyed Peas singer's reasoning behind her performance. "Fergie even apologized for her performance. She said she tried her best and the reasons she decided to sing the song that way because she is a ‘risk taker,'" he noted. "Here’s the thing about taking risks when it comes to the National Anthem: Don’t. Just don’t. Don’t take risks when you’re doing brain surgery, don’t take risks driving a school bus or singing the National Anthem. Just regular is fine."
Calling out Fergie's 2005 song, “My Humps,” with the Black Eyed Peas, he quipped, "In hindsight, trying to work in the words ‘my humps my humps, my lovely lady lumps’ may have been a mistake."
Kimmel added, "It’s not like she was intentionally trying to ruin the song, and in Fergie’s defense, we don’t know what Francis Scott Key was thinking when he wrote the ‘Star-Spangled Banner.’ Maybe he wanted it to be sexy.”
In a statement to ET on Monday, Fergie acknowledged the criticism surrounding her jazzy rendition of the National Anthem, explaining that she tried her best to bring something "special" to the event.
"I've always been honored and proud to perform the National Anthem and last night I wanted to try something special for the NBA," she said. "I’m a risk taker artistically, but clearly this rendition didn’t strike the intended tone."
Days after her controversial rendition of the "Star-Spangled Banner," the 42-year-old singer's ex, Josh Duhamel was spotted at her house with a bouquet of flowers.
Here's a look at the sweet gesture:
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