ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) - Tuning in late at night on Gray stations will be reminiscent of a simpler time.

Starting on Oct. 17, WALB will turn off some regular late-night programming to play the national anthem. Gray Media is proud to announce the release of a new rendition of the national anthem. It will air daily on all WALB platforms.

The rendition is a callback to the days when broadcast stations didn’t have 24-hour shows using the airtime to play our nation’s anthem, honoring those who fought and died for our freedom.

“It’s a great, great idea because airing it for our people helps bring them together. And one of the things that we focus on as local broadcasters is our local communities, but that also means our national community and we need to bring ourselves together. And I think the best thing to bring us together, some may differ with me, but is our National Anthem. And so we brought it back.”

The vocalist for this rendition will be Sydney Jack, a Gray employee working as the operations coordinator at Assembly Atlanta. Her stunning performance accompanied by a youth orchestra comprised of many of the most talented musicians from around Atlanta, embodies Howell’s message of unity.

“The song is about coming up against circumstances that are bleak and grim and having the bravery and the fortitude and that tenacity to move forward and being victorious in the end,” Jack said. “And that’s what I hope we are able to communicate. That’s my story. That’s a story for so many of us, so many Americans.”

Look for the new rendition of the national anthem across WALB platforms overnight.

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