2023 Cover of Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight” Rocks Monday Night Football
A new Monday Night Football theme debuted last night with a brand new cover version of Phil Collins‘ classic track “In The Air Tonight” helped to kick off Monday Night Football. The new and awesome cover of the tune, featuring Chris Stapleton, Snoop Dogg and drummer Cindy Blackman Santana. Cindy is the wife of Carlos Santana. (Each morning this week win two movie passes to see “Carlos: the Santana Journey Global Premier in theatres this weekend)
Stapleton sings Collins’ tune, with Snoop adding the football-themed rap and Blackman Santana adding her take on the iconic “In The Air Tonight” drum break.
“We just wanted to make sure we heard everybody’s voices – whether it was the fans’ voices, whether it was the artists’ voices, whether it was staying true to the ‘Monday Night Football’ brand over the years,” video producer Rico Labbe told USA Today Sports. “We just wanted to make sure we meshed all that together. It could be a challenge. But we think we hit the sweet spot.”
Stapleton shared a preview of the opening on social media before the game. The full clip post by ESPN includes NFL players and game highlights.
Can you feel it? 🔥
— ESPN (@espn) September 19, 2023
The new Monday Night Football Anthem is HERE!@ChrisStapleton x @SnoopDogg x @Drumstress pic.twitter.com/hbuTMMHIT9
The new theme made its debut last night on Monday, September 18, as part of Monday Night Football‘s “Two Games One Night” special airing on ESPN and ABC.
Phil Collins’ version was released in 1981 on his debut solo album “Face Value.” It’s been said that Phil wrote the song about a year earlier when he was going through a divorce with his then-wife Andrea Bertorelli.
Phil has commented that the song came from a lot of frustration, despair, and anger. The rumor that Phil has denied to be true is that the song is about a drowning. Someone is drowning and another is there and able to save them but doesn’t, and watches them drown.