The Grammy-nominated singer who changed the lyric to the Canadian national anthem during the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game to take a dig at President Trump said she did so to “express our outrage in the face of any abuses of power.”
Chantal Kreviazuk apologized if her pitch or imperfect tone “rubbed” fans the wrong way during her rendition of “O Canada” at Boston’s TD Garden on Thursday night, but defended the lyric change.
“In this very peculiar and potentially consequential moment I truly believe that we must stand up, use our voices and try to protect ourselves,” Kreviazuk wrote on Instagram.
“We should express our outrage in the face of any abuses of power.”
The Winnipeg native, 50, purposefully changed the lyrics from “in all of us command” to “that only us command” while singing the Canadian national anthem before the puck dropped.
“I am sorry if you think that we’d be better off annexed,” she wrote. “Art to me is an expression of our truth. and in this very peculiar and potentially consequential moment i truly believe that we must stand up, use our voices and try to protect ourselves”
She added, “Canada, not unlike Ukraine is a sovereign nation. period.”
A rep for the singer indicated that Kreviazuk changed the lyrics in response to the growing political tension between the United States and Canada.
Kreviazuk revealed she plotted the lyric change before she hit the ice, sharing an image with the updated phrase written in black ink on her hand.
She also posted several images on her Instagram story before she went out to perform, including a video of herself in her dressing room, in which she called singing the anthem “what an honor.”
Trump, 78, has repeatedly floated the idea of making Canada the 51st US state — referring to outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “governor.”
The rivalry between the neighboring nations was also fueled by the booing of the national anthems of the United States and Canada during the mid-season tournament.
Canadian hockey fans began booing the American national anthem at Bell Centre in Montreal when Team USA played there on Saturday — sparking three fights to break out in the first nine seconds of the game, which the US won 3-1 with Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau in attendance.
American fans returned the favor when the 4 Nations Face-Off moved to Boston, booing the Canadian anthem when Kreviazuk performed.
Trump did not attend the championship game on Thursday.
However, the commander in chief called the American team earlier in the day and, in a post on Truth Social, said he would be cheering them on from afar.
The social media post also came with continued digs at Canada and the country’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau.
“I’ll be calling our GREAT American Hockey Team this morning to spur them on towards victory tonight against Canada, which with FAR LOWER TAXES AND MUCH STRONGER SECURITY, will someday, maybe soon, become our cherished, and very important, Fifty First State,” Trump posted.
Team USA lost to Canada after Connor McDavid scored in a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory.
The two rivals may have the opportunity to face off again during the Winter Olympics in 2026.
