Jimmy Kimmel addresses being caught 'mocking' Fergie's national anthem performance

Fergie‘s sultry, jazz spin on the US national anthem has found few fans.

Performed at the NBA All-Star Game over the weekend, the rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” seemed to even elicit a few giggles from those in attendance, including some of the players, Chance the Rapper, and late night host Jimmy Kimmel.

However, Kimmel took to his late-night show not only to defend his on-camera reaction, but to state that he wasn’t actually laughing at the performance itself.

“I feel like I need to address something that happened Sunday night at the NBA All-Star Game,” Kimmel said. “Somehow, I became a part of a National Anthem fiasco. Fergie, the singer from the Black Eyed Peas, gave an unusually sultry version of our National Anthem.”

“And I wound up in the middle of it. I just want to say, the reason I was smiling is because I love the National Anthem so much. That’s the face I make when I really love a song.”

That said, the host couldn’t resist making a few jabs about Fergie’s approach, joking: “That was some arrangement though. In hindsight, trying to work in the words ‘my humps my humps, my lovely lady lumps’ may have been a mistake.”

Fergie has since apologised for her rendition, explaining to TMZ that she wanted to take a risk. She said, “I’ve always been honoured and proud to perform the national anthem and last night I wanted to try something special for the NBA. I’m a risk taker artistically, but clearly, this rendition didn’t strike the intended tone.”

She added that she really gave it her all saying, “I love this country and honestly tried my best.”

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