Yes, Indiana native Babyface played his guitar upside down at the Super Bowl. Here's why
As Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds took the field with his patriotic-themed guitar to play "America the Beautiful" during the 2023 Super Bowl, some people expressed confusion on Twitter.
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Edmonds, a North Central High School graduate with an honorary doctorate from Indiana University, was tapped to perform along with country star Chris Stapleton at Super Bowl LVII.
But the guitar had some viewers scratching their heads.
Who gunna tell #babyface he’s holding that guitar upside down? pic.twitter.com/wm2Jym0CpG
— Professor Aviles (@mjaviles89) February 12, 2023
#SuperBowl #BabyFace Really? guitar upside down? Nice playing dude! pic.twitter.com/ZefLEQaVvS
— El Tuitero de Mandalor (@euroj64) February 12, 2023
???♀? Babyface your guitar is upside down and you didn't even successfully play a cord. Show him how it's done Chris....#SuperBowl #Babyface
# pic.twitter.com/YV1GkfbH0a— Kat P (@KathrynPertler) February 12, 2023
Anyone notice #babyface left hand guitar was strung backwards right handed? #SuperBowl
— John no longer in WNC ???????? (@johninasheville) February 12, 2023
I'm no expert but I reckon that guitar is upside down... @babyface #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/ICT5Y4Tj2A
— Eddie Travers (@travers_eddie) February 12, 2023
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It wasn't an embarrassing accident by the 12-time Grammy winner. The guitar may have been upside down, but it's a fairly common practice for left-handed guitar players, and something Edmonds has been doing for quite some time. Some learn to play this way, and some even string it backward, avoiding the need to learn to play right-handed.
It's not uncommon for left-handed musicians to flip their instruments. According to a 2022 feature from Guitar World, left-handed guitars aren't as commonly available, leading to this practice. "A surprising number of left-handed guitarists simply learned on upside-down right-handed guitars, again having to discover their own approach to the instrument because conventional techniques were impossible," Guitar World's Jenna Scaramanga wrote.
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Notably, lefty Kurt Cobain played an upside-down guitar during Nirvana's 1993 MTV Unplugged performance. Jimi Hendrix did the same. According to a 2016 Popular Mechanics article, "he flipped over and restrung standard right-handed Fender Stratocasters."
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Babyface performs at Super Bowl: Some lefties play guitar upside down
