Major League Baseball is pulling out all the stops for next week’s All-Star Game — including employing some of Philadelphia’s own to get the party started.
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On Tuesday, MLB announced its slate of entertainment for the midsummer classic next Tuesday at Citizens Bank Park (FOX, 8 p.m.). Philly native and “Godmother of Soul” Patti LaBelle will perform the national anthem, while EGOT winner Jennifer Hudson is slated to sing “America the Beautiful.” Additionally, Philadelphia R&B group Boyz II Men and Top Gun: Maverick star Miles Teller, a Downingtown native, also headline the game’s entertainers.
“As we gather to celebrate America’s 250th birthday, Philadelphia is the perfect stage to bring this milestone to life,” MLB Chief Marketing Officer Uzma Rawn Dowler said in a statement. “… This lineup captures the unique energy of the city while honoring how baseball has been a part of the American spirit for 250 years.”
The 2026 All-Star Game entertainment lineup has been announced 🔥
— MLB (@MLB) July 7, 2026
-Jennifer Hudson to perform “America the Beautiful”
-Philadelphia’s Patti LaBelle to sing national anthem
-Pennsylvania natives Miles Teller and Boyz II Men to participate in All-Star presentation features pic.twitter.com/NMdIgBGFpc
LaBelle will be accompanied by the Military District of Washington Joint Chorus and West Point Band for her rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” LaBelle, 82, was born in Southwest Philadelphia and attended Bartram High School, and currently resides in Villanova. In 2019, the city honored the two-time Grammy winner by renaming a block of Broad Street between Spruce and Locust “Patti LaBelle Way.”
“I’m a Philadelphia girl,” LaBalle told The Inquirer in February. “It’s laid back, comfortable. … How I like it.”
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Hudson will also have some backup, as she will perform “America the Beautiful” alongside the Philly Pops and the U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps. In 2022, Hudson became the youngest of 22 total people to have won each of entertainment’s biggest awards — an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. The Chicago native is the only All-Star performer who does not boast direct Philadelphia ties, but she is no stranger to playing in the city — just last month, her tour with Josh Groban stopped at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Most notably, the “Spotlight” singer headlined the Wawa Welcome America Festival in 2019.
Boyz II Men will also be performing, but it is currently unclear if the group will be diving into its extensive discography. After the game’s fifth inning, the group will provide the soundtrack to the league’s Stand Up To Cancer placard moment — where fans will hold up signs for their loved ones who have been affected by cancer. The MLB first started the tradition in Philadelphia during the 2009 World Series.
Miles Teller, the only non-musician on the list, will be lending his voice to a “stirring tribute of baseball’s impact on American life,” according to MLB. The task is fitting for the Hollywood star, who has made his Phillies fandom known over the years. During the 2022 World Series, where the Phillies fell to the Houston Astros in six games, Teller was a mainstay at Citizens Bank Park. He told The Inquirer he had befriended Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola and then-first baseman Rhys Hoskins. The Whiplash actor even texts with team play-by-play announcer Tom McCarthy.
“It’s a pretty big year,” Teller said in 2022. “Top Gun. Also I turned 35, which feels like a number. [I] hosted Saturday Night Live for the first time. And the Phillies, man. I’ve always lived and died with the Phillies, dude. That’s always been the most important thing to me.”
Baseball’s biggest stars are descending on Philadelphia for the 96th All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 14. Follow all of The Inquirer’s coverage here.
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