Queens We Are the Champions is as synonymous to winning the Super Bowl as Im going to Disney World. Following the New England Patriots palpitating 28-24 win over the Seattle Seahawks in the Big Game, a special post-Super Bowl episode ofThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon unleashed an all-star a cappella version of the song.
With the screen divided into a nine-square grid a laThe Brady Bunch opening credits, Fallon sang the opening lines of the News of the World classic while the Roots constructed a tight rhythm section using only their own mouths. Then Carrie Underwood flipped in to carry the song for a few lyrics, which was followed by new Rolling Stone cover star Sam Smith and Ariana Grande sharing a duet on the triumphant chorus.
Usher, Blake Shelton, Meghan Trainor and One Direction (who just toy around after being squeezed into one square) also contributed to the Champions bit, but in an a cappella performance that featured big time voices like Underwood and Grande, its Christina Aguilera who steals the songwith a skyscraping final chorus during the grand finale.
This isnt the first time Fallon delivered one of these inventive a cappellas: In an October 2013 episode of Late Night With Jimmy Fallon(before the hosts Tonight Show tenure began last February), Fallon, the Roots and Miley Cyrus teamed up for a similarly minimalist rendition of her hit single We Cant Stop.