Before the Kansas City Royals take on the Texas Rangers on Thursday at Kauffman Stadium, several familiar faces will perform the national anthem.
Waterville indie/folk band Oliver Hazard, which consists of Michael Belazis, Griffin McCulloch, and Devin East, is set to sing the national anthem before the 1:15 p.m. Eastern time game.
“It’s pretty surreal,” McCulloch said. “We’ve always loved baseball games growing up and to perform the national anthem has been a dream of mine and it’s coming to fruition. We’re ecstatic.”
The band will perform the song a capella after walking onto the baseball field.
All it took to grab the Royals’ attention was a recorded video of the band singing “The Star Spangled Banner” that served as an audition.
Hank Wiedel, director of Sofar Sounds in Kansas City and talent buyer for Mammoth Live, an event production company, said he had the band record the song from its house in Waterville and sent the video link to the events coordinator for the Royals. He’s booked the band a few times in the past for shows, including another Saturday at the Bluegrass In The Bottoms music festival in Kansas City.
“Oliver Hazard has been one of those bands I’ve had my eye on for well over a year,” Wiedel said. “They’re an eager band and take every opportunity they can get. That’s something I’ve found appealing and you don’t see that in bands [often]. That needed to be rewarded and I think Kansas City needs to see the things I see in them.”
In an email, Nicole Averso, director of event presentation for the Kansas City Royals, said a Bluegrass in the Bottoms music festival mutual connection notified her about Oliver Hazard, and it was the only group from the festival who sent an anthem audition. At the time, she didn’t have an act booked for the national anthem for Thursday’s game, and because the group was already going to be in Kansas City for the music festival, the timing worked itself out, she said.
Kauffman Stadium can seat nearly 38,000 people.
While the game will broadcast through the MLB Network, as well as Kansas City television and radio stations, the national anthem will not. The band will record a video of its performance and post the link to its social media pages later this week.
Oliver Hazard will also release an acoustic version of “Oh My Other,” a collaboration with BUNT., a German EDM duo, Friday through Geffen Records, and is currently on a living room tour.
First Published May 14, 2019, 4:44 p.m.
