Indie singer Loomis botches the national anthem at the Free and Equal Presidential Debate

An indie singer horrifically butchered her rendition of the national anthem during a live broadcast of the Free & Equal Presidential Debate between three third-party presidential candidates.

Loomis was asked to speak in Los Angeles on Wednesday in front of candidates Chase Oliver (Libertarian Party), Dr. Jill Stein (Green Party) and Randall Terry (Constitution Party) were singing the “Star-Spangled Banner” when the performance got out of hand.

Loomis’ voice broke mid-anthem, acapella, as she belted out “and the rockets red glare,” claiming she was distracted.

“I messed up, I messed up, can I please go back?” the singer pleaded.

The broadcast staff outside the stage informed Loomis that it was a live broadcast and she could not go back, so she could continue singing.

“The bombs are exploding in the air,” she continued before pausing again.

“I got too nervous,” Loomis added.

The singer received applause from several people on stage as she walked away seemingly confused as to where to go.

“Thank you so much, Loomis, that was beautiful. Thank you for coming here tonight,” said debate co-moderator Christina Tobin.

The singer, who has fewer than 3,000 streams on Spotify, tried to explain herself after her now-viral performance.

“I really sing and I’m a really good singer. So what happened was I didn’t know it was live,” Loomis told TMZ.

The singer claimed she only had a day before the debate to practice the “scariest thing she’s ever done.”

Loomis says she went out and started singing, but one of the production people told her they weren’t ready yet, so she assumed it wasn’t live so she could go back.

“When we got to the spot I got nervous and then I was scared, but it was crazy,” she added.

Loomis says she is the daughter of a veteran and didn’t want to mess up the anthem.

“Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always said I didn’t want to sing the national anthem. That to me is the scariest thing ever because everyone stands up so seriously and everyone is very quiet,” she told the outlet while holding her left hand against her chest.

She’s not the first singer to botch her rendition of the “Star-Spangled Banner,” and she has a theory as to why the botched performances are so common.

“It’s so normal and everyone is so calm and so serious. It’s not like having your own show when you can be yourself or express yourself,” she said. “It’s like standing up for the whole nation, and that’s a scary thing.”

Loomis isn’t letting her infamous appearance stop her singing career or her display of patriotism, as she’s already received an offer from “Good Morning America” ​​to redeem herself.

The Free & Equal Presidential Debate was hosted by the Free and Equal Elections Foundation, a nonprofit organization committed to electoral reform and a fair, transparent electoral process.

In the race for the White House in 2024, former President Donald Trump is neck-and-neck with Vice President Kamala Harris, as third-party candidates receive around 1 percent nationally, according to KTVZ.

The most successful third party general election campaign occurred in 1912, when incumbent Theodore Roosevelt ran for the Progressive Party, receiving 27.4 percent of the popular vote and 88 electoral votes, ultimately losing to eventual winner Woodrow Wilson.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. campaigned as an independent but dropped out and endorsed Trump when Harris replaced President Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket.