This year’s Sugar Bowl promises an emotional atmosphere to match the competitive spirit on the field, as the No. 2 seeded Georgia faces No. 7 seeded Notre Dame in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal this Thursday afternoon at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.

The kickoff is set for just 36 hours after a tragic incident where an armed individual drove through Bourbon Street in New Orleans, resulting in at least 14 fatalities and over 30 injuries, which the FBI is treating as a terrorist act. This event caused the Sugar Bowl, originally planned for Wednesday night, to be postponed.

However, the game will still kick off at 4 p.m. ET, and the rendition of the National Anthem is expected to resonate deeply in light of the recent tragedy. Bowl officials recently announced that Samyra, a local talent from New Orleans, will be performing “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Here’s what to know about Samyra ahead of her performance at the 2025 Sugar Bowl, featuring Georgia and Notre Dame:

What is Samyra’s age?

According to the Sugar Bowl media announcement, Samyra Miller is 26 years old.

Where did Samyra attend college?

Samyra Miller’s rise as a musician and content creator began during her time at Harvard. Last year, she shared with BET that she was the music director for the “Harvard LowKeys,” an a capella group. A 2021 graduate, she also garnered attention on Instagram among fellow students. The Harvard Gazette referred to her account as the “prime source for everything Harvard” during 2020, when students were forced off campus due to the pandemic.

Samyra gained fame on TikTok

Samyra’s career took flight after she became well-known on TikTok, acting as both a content creator and body positivity advocate following her graduation. She currently boasts over 2.2 million followers on TikTok, along with 459,000 on Instagram. Her breakthrough performance, a cover of “Supermodel” from the film “Clueless,” earned her a spot on “The Jennifer Hudson Show” in February 2023.

Over the past year, she has been successful with her self-released track “Plus-Size Freestyle,” which merges R&B, rap, and pop while promoting a message of body positivity.

Samyra honors her New Orleans roots

Samyra, who hails from New Orleans, attributes her passion for music to the chaos surrounding Hurricane Katrina during her childhood. After the storm, her family relocated to Texas, where she participated in her new school’s talent show shortly after arriving. She began her journey with training as a classical singer.

“I always say that New Orleans empowered me to be whoever I want to be because of its free-spirited nature. What I love about this city is how it fosters expression without judgment,” Samyra expressed in a BET interview last May. “You can walk through the French Quarter and witness people dancing and drumming on buckets—it’s filled with self-expression and joy, which is the essence of my city.”

Samyra comes from a football family

Samyra’s father, Bobby Miller, played football at LSU, and she herself played defensive tackle during her high school football days. Along with her older sister, she frequently sang the National Anthem at Lusher High School games. “The fun part was that I would sing the anthem and then quickly head to the field in my shoulder pads and helmet to play the game,” Samyra recounted to Sugar Bowl officials.