Alessia Cara, Bebe Rexha to sing national anthems in Game 2 of World Series

Alessia Cara arrives at the premiere of "Emily in Paris" at the Egyptian Theatre, in Los Angeles, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Invision, Jordan Strauss

TORONTO — Alessia Cara is set to lend her voice to Canada’s national anthem for Game 2 in the World Series on Saturday night, while pop singer Bebe Rexha will take on the Star-Spangled Banner ahead of the match between the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers.

The announcement came on Friday, as baseball fans geared up to hear O Canada in the World Series for the first time in more than 30 years.

American gospel group Voices of Fire was the listed performer for both anthems ahead of Friday night’s game in Toronto, along with “a local ensemble of vocalists” joining for O Canada.

An MLB spokesperson said the decision to have Pharrell Williams and the 75-member Voices of Fire headline the pre-game performance was made before the Jays won the American League Championship Series and earned their spot in the finals.

MLB said members of Toronto-area choirs, orchestras and marching bands would join the anthem performance for Game 1 in what promised to be a massive display.

And on Saturday, the Mississauga, Ont.-born Cara is due to join a short list of Canadian singers who have performed O Canada during the World Series. The Jays — Canada’s sole remaining MLB team — have only made it to the World Series twice before: in 1992 and 1993.

The Montreal Expos, who were relocated to Washington, D.C., after the 2004 season, never made it to the series.

Michael Burgess, the late Canadian tenor, became the first person to sing O Canada in the World Series in 1992 and he reprised the role for the first game of the series in ’93. Singing the U.S. anthems those games were Billy Ray Cyrus and Aretha Franklin, respectively.

Other Canadian anthem performers in the ’90s included Anne Murray, Tom Cochrane and Rita MacNeil.

Those performances are still talked about today by those who recall watching — particularly Cochrane’s, as he flubbed some of the words.

Some fans said they were looking forward to the music that would come along with the celebrations this weekend.

In addition to Cara and Rexha, the Jonas Brothers were due to perform partway through Saturday’s game as part of a partnership with Stand Up to Cancer.

“I’m super stoked,” said Patrick Yutiga, a local. “I’m loving the celebrity lineup with Pharrell and the Jonas Brothers. I think having the Jays play the World Series brings out the top-tier-ness in A-level celebrities, and yeah, super excited.”

Ben Kapito, a Blue Jays fan who made the trek to Toronto from his home in Norfolk, Va., said he’d been waiting for this game for 30 years.

He’s happy to hear whoever sings the anthems, but said there is one Canadian he wouldn’t mind hearing.

“The only Canadian that I know is Celine Dion, right? So probably her.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2025.

Nicole Thompson and Fatima Raza, The Canadian Press