Influencer
Marissa Gallardo on Singing the National Anthem for Sacramento Kings & Growing on Instagram
Marissa Gallardo is a 16-year-old singer who started singing professionally two years ago. Her big break? Singing the National Anthem in front of 19,000 people at a Sacramento Kings game. Today, she shares about her singing career, Instagram content, and brand sponsorships.
Who is Marissa Gallardo?
Marissa Gallardo has been singing since she was five years old and has been singing professionally for the last two years. Her first professional gig was singing the National Anthem for the Sacramento Kings. Around the same time, she started her Instagram to share her singing journey.
She shares, “I post about when I sing at certain places or have anthems or when I have auditions. I make that public, so people get an insight into my life and what I’m doing as far as singing.”
Marissa’s Instagram Content
When asked about her audience, Marissa says that her audience is all over the place. She notes that she has family and friends that follow her, along with NFL coaches and players, and other young people like herself that have a social media presence.
In terms of growth, she explains, “I think what’s been key is to kind of be a lot more authentic because I really like to see that rather than a super staged post… I think everybody has their moments where they are dealing with personal stuff, so I don’t mind posting certain things or pictures a little bit, not just the professional side of me.”
For her, this may look like pictures where she’s making funny faces or striking a simple pose.
Her advice for other musicians and singers wanting to grow on social media?
“I feel like social media you can kind of make your own… I would say specifically for music, people really like covers, so I’d say to try and stay consistent with them.”
She adds, “People can, of course, love your voice, but if they don’t love who you are, they don’t really get the insight [into your life] or get to know you.”
Singing the National Anthem at the NBA
Marissa shares that her mom acts as her manager and was able to help her get the opportunity to sing at the NBA game.
Initially, when they heard back about singing the national anthem, she was told they had someone else booked. However, they loved her voice so much that they were able to push her to the top of the list, eventually landing her the job.
Marissa shares that it wasn’t promised that she would sing, but she did end up getting the gig. This was her first time singing in front of thousands of people, which was nerve-racking. However, she practiced extensively, which helped.
She completed a mic check the day of the game but had a curveball thrown her way. The NBA has a tight TV window for how long the national anthem performance can take, so they told Marissa that she would need to shorten her rendition of the song.
Regarding singing in front of thousands of people, Marissa shares, “The best part about this was that I couldn’t see anybody because the light was so bright. After I was done singing, I was like “What just happened?”
She said it was a crazy but rewarding experience that she wishes more people could experience. Marissa explains that she shares her anthem experiences on her social media, including videos for the event itself and the behind-the-scenes of preparing to sing the national anthem.
Marissa’s Singing Career
“I think that first anthem I got really started everything for me because then I had more people asking me to do the anthem, which opened up more opportunities for me to do more anthems. I think it really pushed me out of my comfort zone as an artist.”
She credits doing that first anthem with helping her land her other anthem gigs and even her first upcoming halftime show.
Marissa shares that many people are also very supportive of singers performing the national anthem, which helps.
Another interesting part of her career was that her first professional gig, singing for the Kings, was in front of 19,000 people, which was a significant increase in the number of people that she had ever sung in front of. Before singing in front of a crowd, she prays, which calms her nerves. She also likes that the camera is in your face because you can’t see the crowds as much.
Brand Sponsorships
Marissa’s first brand sponsorship was with the footwear brand, Crocs.
“That was really exciting to me because I’ve been wearing Crocs since I was a little girl. I remember when my mom told me they were going to send me some free Crocs, and we were going to take some pictures, and I was like, “Yes! Sign me up. I would love to take pictures in my Crocs.”
For the collaboration, she wanted to take an athletic approach and show herself wearing her Crocs for training. She also took a picture of herself with football players, who were wearing their cleats, with herself wearing her Crocs. In addition, Marissa wore them to the Chase Center during practice and to practice singing the anthem.
“It was kind of showing that I bring my Crocs with me to everything… I also did a few [pictures] of me working out in my Crocs.”
For this campaign, there weren’t any specific metrics she aimed to meet. The campaign was more about brand awareness and sharing how Marissa wears her Crocs.
Marissa shares that she hasn’t done many brand sponsorships yet, but there are many brands that she would love to collaborate with in the future.
Her dream collab?
“I’d say definitely a makeup brand… I really love makeup, so that would really go along with my personality. I would love to collaborate with a makeup brand and come out with my own eyeshadow palette… I’d love to name the shades after different anthems or singing [themes.].”
She would also love to work with a microphone company or different brands in the music industry.
Future Plans
Marissa has many exciting plans for the future.
She is thrilled to be performing during an upcoming halftime show, where she will have backup dancers. She notes that this is the first show she’s performing that isn’t the national anthem or worship music.
Another exciting plan is her upcoming tour with the Maverick City Choir. She will perform at the Staple Center, in Las Vegas at the TMobile Arena, and in the Concord Pavilion.
“I think that last thing is I’m putting together an event… it’s for athletes, it’s going to be a worship event where we pray over the players as they go into the next season, and I’m going to be leading the worship… This is something I’m most excited about because I’m creating it [the event] from scratch.”
