The 64-year-old rapper, hype man and Public Enemy co-founder has had a knack for inspiring viral moments across decades. Flav’s polarizing a cappella version of the national anthem is just the latest totem to add to his storied and expectation-defying career.
We caught up with the eccentric rapper to get his thoughts on his “bucket list” performance, and whether he would do it again.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
So how did this come together? How was it that you came to perform the national anthem in Milwaukee?
Well, it was the president of the Milwaukee Bucks that made this happen for me, Peter Feigin. I asked him one day, “Can I come to the Bucks game to sing the national anthem?” He said, “Well, send me a video of you singing it.” I sent him a video of me singing it. He got back to me and said, “Hey, I like it. Come on, let’s do it.”
I understand this has been a longtime “bucket list” wish for you.
It’s something that I always wanted to do, you know what I’m saying? For the past, maybe four or five years. And I just thank God for the power and opportunity that he gave me to be able to do this and accomplish it.
I had a feeling that the first time that I did it, I was going to do okay. And I had a feeling it was gonna go viral. I, like, expected it. Nobody would expect Flavor Flav of Public Enemy singing the national anthem, so I knew that it was going to be kind of crazy.
It’s a famously hard song to sing. Were there any parts that you were anxious or excited about?
Oh, I was just anxious and excited about singing the whole thing and seeing what would happen at the end.
How did you practice for your performance?
Honestly, to tell you the truth, I didn’t even really practice. I had to go do a sound check. That was about it. But I didn’t practice it because I know the song. I knew how I wanted to sing it and I said, “Just get out there and just do your thing, Flav.” This is it, no turning back now.
So did you do any vocal warm-ups before you went out there?
Nope. I just went out there and did my thing.
What was going through your mind as you started singing?
The thing that was going through my mind is, “Flav, you better nail this. You better nail this because the whole world is watching. All eyes are on you.” And I did it.
I’ve got to ask you about the “home of the brave” part. Did you know you were going to sing it that way, or did you improvise that?
Yeah, I knew I was going to sing it that way. And I sang it that way on purpose because I wanted to make sure that I have other opportunities to do it again.
Did it go how you wanted it to go?
It went real good. I had a feeling I was going to get some haters out there — that was expected, too. There’s a lot of people that love Flav, but not everybody loves Flav. But, mostly, everybody loves Flav.
You’re no stranger to performing. How is this the same from your previous live performances and how is it different?
Well, it’s not the same, that’s for sure. Definitely completely different. Because I’m from the rap music world, you know what I’m saying? I’m rapping words. When it comes down to the national anthem, you’re singing a melody. It’s a whole lot different from what I always do.
Is that part of the reason you wanted to do it?
Yeah. Because I wanted to show the world that I could hold a note.
Would you do it again? Is there anything you would do differently?
I would do it again, and the next time that I do it, I would do it a lot quicker. I really took my time with this one, and the reason why is because, for my first time around, I said, I’m going to have fun with this. But the next time I’ll sing it, you know, a little more quicker and more generically.
Because you’ve already shown them what you can do?
Yeah. Now I can just go out there and just get the job done. Bing, bang, boom!
