Singing the national anthem in front of a crowd can be a nerve-racking experience, even for someone who does it all the time.
A redshirt sophomore on the Ball State soccer team, Lauren Hall has a passion for music and enjoys performing in public.
On Oct. 4, she sang the national anthem prior to the women's volleyball match.
Despite Hall's music background, she was a bit uneasy to perform in front of the large crowd.
“I find it kind of stressful, because so many people have messed [the national anthem] up in the past,” Hall said.
Though nervous, her performance drew a big applause from the crowd, and depending on her soccer schedule on Oct. 9, she will do it again.
This was Hall’s first time performing the anthem for a college crowd, but she also performed it once in high school.
“I’d been hoping they would ask me to perform it live for awhile, and I really hope they ask me to sing before a football game someday," Hall said. "That would be amazing.”
The national anthem is just one of many songs Hall sings. She has her own YouTube channel where she covers songs by her favorite performers, like Adele.
Hall's singing ability caught the attention of soccer head coach Craig Roberts early, and it was something that they connected on.
“I found out about her singing when I was recruiting her, and we both connected with our shared interest in Adele and other performers,” Roberts said.
Lauren Hall covers Someone Like You by Adele
The team was first exposed to her singing last year when Hall sang during a talent show the team hosted.
“I encourage and support the players with their talents outside of soccer, and I like to them to all show one at the beginning of the year and she sang for us,” Roberts said.
Since then, Hall has been singing frequently for the team, whether it's on the bus or in the locker room. She even competed in Ball State's talent show last year.
Her singing has become such a hit with the team that she was asked to sing at Roberts' wedding last summer.
“I said as a joke when we found out he got engaged that I have to sing at your wedding, and sure enough, he came and asked me to sing.” Hall said. “I assumed it would just be during like the reception or something, but it ended up being their first dance.”
Hall sang "One and Only" by Adele for them, and she said she wasn’t sure whether that or her latest performance was more nerve-racking.
She already plans to sing for the senior banquet at the end of the year, and she joked that Roberts is already recruiting another singer to continue the tradition for her when she leaves.
Hall doesn’t limit her singing to the team and on her YouTube channel. She constantly performs in talent shows on campus, and has tried out for "American Idol" and "The Voice."
“I’ve gotten pretty far through the audition process but never got on television,” Hall said.
Her coach said she did get an e-mail from "The Voice," saying that she could get a second chance to get on the show.
Hall has also considered joining music groups around campus and auditioned for University Singers, but said that soccer is her main priority and has decided to not join any clubs.
“I’ll always have my voice, but I won’t always have my body and athleticism, so I focus on soccer in school and pursue music outside of school,” she said.
As far as soccer goes, Hall has excelled not only for the Ball State team, but also playing for the Honduras National team during the summer, traveling and playing in world qualifiers.
She has been recovering slowly from an injury suffered earlier this season, but her coach said her experience from this summer improved her game.
Hall said she loves soccer, but singing is her greatest passion and something she hopes to make a career of once her soccer days are over.
“I love soccer," Hall said. "But if I could sing for a living and perform for a living I will be the happiest person in the world.”
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