Ostensibly, Josh Duhamel appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Friday to promote USA's limited series, Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and Biggie—but he also wanted to defend his ex-wife Fergie's sultry rendition of the National Anthem at the NBA All-Star Game on Feb. 18.
"I know she's been slammed and hammered for this National Anthem thing. That must be hard," said Ellen DeGeneres, adding that she feels "really bad" for Fergie. "How is she doing?"
"I think she would probably admit that it was not her best work, but the girl is crazy talented. She really is. She's an amazing woman—an amazing human being, really," Duhamel said. "It's hard to see somebody you care about get beat up like that. That's the business, you know? You're in this business. You put yourself out there. Sometimes you win. Sometimes you lose."
"Trust me, she's fine," Duhamel added. "She is about as resilient as they come."
After Fergie's performance went viral, she issued a statement to E! News Monday. "I've always been honored and proud to perform the National Anthem and last night I wanted to try something special for the NBA," the pop star explained. "I'm a risk taker artistically, but clearly this rendition didn't strike the intended tone. I love this country and honestly tried my best."
Jimmy Kimmel was seen smirking during her performance, which he later discussed on his late-night show. "Here's the thing about taking risks," he said on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. "When it comes to the National Anthem—don't. Don't take risks when you're doing brain surgery, don't take risks when you're driving a school bus, or singing the national anthem. Just regular is fine."
"There are only a few people who can sing raw dog, and Fergie is not one," Wendy Williams said, adding that "she needs auto-tune"—and Beyoncé, Janet Jackson and Jennifer Lopez do, too. Meanwhile, during a shortened, five-minute edition of The Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon snickered, "I don't want to say it was rough, but even [President Donald Trump] took a knee."