Singer Pink has come down with the flu ahead of her anticipated performance of the National Anthem at Super Bowl LII on Sunday — but the show will apparently go on.
The “What About Us” singer is slated to kick off the festivities ahead of the Big Game on Sunday, but revealed in an Instagram post that she is battling the illness ahead of the show.’
“Trying to practice the flu away. I’ve been waiting to sing this song since 1991 when I saw my idol, Whitney Houston, own this song,” Pink wrote. “And now, my chance has finally come. And it just so happens that this chance comes when I have two small Petri dish kids who literally cough INTO MY MOUTH and rub their snot on my cheek. You can’t write this stuff I swear!”
The Grammy-winning singer called performing the National Anthem “one of the biggest honors” of her life and vowed to do her best during the show.
“As far as the gremlins that got me into this mess, you can cough at me for the rest of your lives. If it’s a contest, babies, you win,” she joked.
The Super Bowl is slated to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET when the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles kick off in frigid Minneapolis.
Justin Timberlake is set to perform during the halftime show.
This year’s flu season has been called the worst in nearly a decade, since the deadly swine flu scare of 2009. Forty-seven states have characterized the flu as widespread within their borders, while more than 50 children have died from the illness so far this season.
Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum