When Grammy Award winning singer Coco Jones sang "Lift Every Voice and Sing" before the kickoff of the Super Bowl on Sunday (2/8) many were surprised on social media when some called it The Black National Anthem.

The term is an unofficial one for the song that was written as a poem in 1900 by James Weldon Johnson and put to music by his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson.

In his autobiography, Along This Way (1933), James wrote that the song which is often heard in churches was first performed by schoolchildren at the Stanton School in Jacksonville, Florida, in honor of President Lincoln’s birthday celebration in 1900.

Over time it adopted in the Civil Rights movement in the '50s and '60s and deemed the Negro National Anthem by the NAACP who still praise Johnson's lyrics as ones that "eloquently captured the solemn yet hopeful appeal for the liberty of Black Americans."

The NAACP deemed it their official hymn in 1919, whereas "The Star Spangled Banner" didn't become the USA's national anthem until 1931.

Why would organizations, including the Super Bowl, feel like there should be more than one anthems when the nation has decided that Francis Scott Key wrote to the music of John Smith?

Easy: critics say "The Star Spangled Banner" only tells a fraction of a tale about The War of 1812, specifically a tense night and morning during The Battle of Baltimore.

As good as the anthem is, despite being so awkward, it doesn't talk about the actual people, specifically the enslaved ones who helped fight those battles and build the nation. And it was not surprising as Key was a slaveowner himself.

Thus a song that could be sung with hope and pride and optimism was embraced by churches, causes, and now celebrations -- particularly in a games like the Super Bowl, where Black players make up the vast majority.

Over the years it has been sung by greats like Mahalia Jackson before and after civil rights marches.

And even President Obama sang it with a group of stars at the White House.

It was the third song of Beyoncé's performances at Coachella in 2018.

"I had a clear vision for Coachella," Bey told Vogue that fall. I was so specific because I’d seen it, I’d heard it, and it was already written inside of me.

"One day I was randomly singing the Black national anthem to Rumi while putting her to sleep. I started humming it to her every day. In the show at the time I was working on a version of the anthem with these dark minor chords and stomps and belts and screams."

"After a few days of humming the anthem, I realized I had the melody wrong. I was singing the wrong anthem," she recalled.

"One of the most rewarding parts of the show was making that change. I swear I felt pure joy shining down on us. I know that most of the young people on the stage and in the audience did not know the history of the Black national anthem before Coachella. But they understood the feeling it gave them," she explained.

Like "The Star Spangled Banner," artists have taken liberties with "Lift Every Voice" to incorporate their styles.

When Ray Charles was on Dick Cavett on Sept. 18, 1972, alongside The Raelettes (Vernita Moss, Susaye Green, Mable John, Dorothy Berry, & Estella Yarbrough), he made it jump.

Alicia Keys filmed a hushed rendition at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the NFL’s 2020 season kickoff, which was later replayed before Super Bowl LV on February 7, 2021.

Since then, the hymn has become a somewhat controversial fixture of the Super Bowl's pre‑game because some are uncomfortable with there being an alternative anthem.

Regardless, in 2022, Mary Mary sang it with the Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles at SoFi Stadium for Super Bowl LVI in Inglewood.

That was the year Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre were the halftime entertainers.

In 2023, Sheryl Lee Ralph performed it at State Farm Stadium for Super Bowl LVII in Glendale, Arizona.

If you recall that was the year a very pregnant Rihanna wowed the audience with her halftime show.

In 2024, Andra Day took it on at Allegiant Stadium for Super Bowl LVIII in Paradise, Nevada.

Usher was the entertainer at half time for that one.

Then last year, in 2025, Ledisi led it with a Greater New Orleans high‑school choral collective at Caesars Superdome for Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.

And who could forget that Kendrick Lamar blew everyone away with his record-breaking halftime diss heard around the world.

Ledisi will be singing in Grand Rapids later this month. Then she heads to Seattle, home of the Super Bowl champs. Then Ohio. Grab your tickets off her website.