The 2026 NFL Draft is set to kick off shortly in Pittsburgh. Ahead of the festivities, a local artist is set to take the stage to sing the national anthem.
KELS to Sing the National Anthem at the 2026 NFL Draft
Pittsburgh’s own KELS is about to have one of the biggest moments of her career. The rising jazz-soul vocalist will perform the national anthem to open the 2026 NFL Draft in her hometown tonight, Thursday, April 23, with festivities kicking off around 8 p.m. EDT at the Draft Theater next to Acrisure Stadium.
Born Kelsey Hillock in Germany to military parents, KELS moved to the Pittsburgh area at age five, where she was raised and found her musical footing. She began writing songs as a young teenager, trained as a jazz vocalist at 15, and grew up singing in church choirs and jazz ensembles.
Her sound, a distinctive blend of jazz, soul, pop, and R&B, draws on influences like Lauryn Hill, Sarah Vaughan, Erykah Badu, Adele, and Amy Winehouse.
Singer-songwriter KELS takes us on a tour of the city that shaped and inspired her.
Today, she returns to Pittsburgh to open the 2026 NFL Draft by singing the national anthem 🇺🇸❤️ pic.twitter.com/nxNwNQLxwW
— NFL (@NFL) April 23, 2026
Now based in Atlanta, KELS broke out with her 2021 debut EP Slow Ryde and went viral the following year with “Just Let Me Go (Live at Kingfly Spirits),” which racked up hundreds of thousands of streams and more than half a million TikTok views.
In 2023, she completed a remarkable 52-show U.S. tour entirely independently (no label, no manager) and has since headlined venues including Eddie’s Attic in Atlanta, Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles, and Arlene’s Grocery in New York. Her Spotify following has grown to over 500,000 monthly listeners.
Preceding the anthem, the James Weldon Johnson Foundation’s National Hymn Choir, featuring the Heritage Gospel Chorale of Pittsburgh, will perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” conducted by Grammy winner Dr. Jeffery Redding.
KELS joins a three-day entertainment lineup that also features Wiz Khalifa, Kane Brown, and Bret Michaels, a celebration of Pittsburgh’s deep roots in both music and football, and a hometown showcase KELS has clearly earned.
