Nezza says her Spanish rendition of U.S. anthem at Dodger Stadium was against team’s wishes

LOS ANGELES — As protests were in full force in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night, a Spanish rendition of the United States national anthem was sung at Dodger Stadium. Vanessa Hernández, more commonly known as Nezza, sang “El Pendón Estrellado” — the official Spanish version commissioned by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945.

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Except, according to Nezza, the Los Angeles Dodgers told her not to, citing the club’s usual standard practice of having anthem singers perform in English.

“We are going to do the song in English today,” an unidentified Dodgers employee told Nezza in a video she posted on TikTok. “I’m not sure if that wasn’t relayed.”

She sang the song anyway, donning a Dominican Republic shirt, explaining in a later video that she chose to sing the Spanish version in response to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement crackdown in Los Angeles that has spurred protests for more than a week and dovetailed with the nationwide “No Kings” protests against a military parade in Washington.

@babynezza i love you guys stay safe out there ♬ original sound – nezz

The parade coincided with President Donald Trump’s birthday celebration in Washington, D.C., as well as the 250th birthday celebration for the United States Army. While Trump was running for his second term, he promised to “carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history.”

“I didn’t think I’d be met with any sort of no,” Nezza said in the later video. “Especially because we’re in L.A., and with everything happening. I’ve sang the national anthem many times in my life, but today, out of all days, I could not.

“I just felt like I needed to do it. Para mi gente.”

Nezza was not punished or kicked out of the ballpark after her unexpected rendition of the anthem and is not expected to be banned from Dodger Stadium going forward. The Dodgers did not have any comment when asked by The Athletic about the video, which she herself posted after the fact.

The Dodgers themselves have not made any public statements over the past week of protests, unlike fellow Los Angeles-based franchises such as Angel City F.C., which handed out T-shirts that read “Immigrant City Football Club”. Players also wore the shirts as a show of support for the protests.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was asked about the protests on Friday, saying, “Honestly, I don’t know enough, to be quite honest with you. I know that when you’re having to bring people in and deport people, all the unrest, it’s certainly unsettling for everyone. But I haven’t dug enough and can’t speak intelligently on it.”

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The lone player to speak on the issue has been utility man Kiké Hernández, who posted on Instagram on Saturday night, shortly before Nezza’s anthem rendition, writing:

“I may not be Born & Raised, but this city adopted me as one of their own. I am saddened and infuriated by what’s happening in our country and our city. Los Angeles and Dodger fans have welcomed me, supported me and shown me nothing but kindness and love. This is my second home. And I cannot stand to see our community being violated, profiled, abused and ripped apart. ALL people deserve to be treated with respect, dignity and human rights. #CityOfImmigrants.”

(Photo: Jessie Alcheh / Associated Press)

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