Live 5 WCSC airing national anthem daily

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - For decades the national anthem was how American television stations went off the air and returned back to the airwaves the following morning.

Reina Özbay, 9, of South Florida, a classically-trained soprano and she studies opera and... — Reina Özbay, 9, of South Florida, a classically-trained soprano and she studies opera and musical theater, performs "The Star Spangled Banner."

The tradition ended for the most part as stations went to 24-hour operations beginning in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

But since Flag Day of 2019, Live 5 WCSC brought the tradition back by playing the national anthem early every morning.

The video above airs weekday mornings just before Live 5 News at 4:30 a.m., and on Saturday and Sunday mornings just before Live 5 News at 6 a.m.

The video also plays weekdays at 7 a.m., Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. and Sundays at 8:30 a.m. on our secondary channel, Bounce Charleston.

Live 5 WCSC joins its Gray Television sister stations in 93 markets across the country in playing “The Star Spangled Banner.”

The singer in this video is 9-year-old Reina Özbay, of South Florida, who has been inspiring crowds with her performances since she was just 4 years old. She is a classically-trained soprano and she studies opera and musical theater.

Her first guest starring role was Abigail in “The Chosen,” the number one crowdfunded film or TV project in history.

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