12-year-old Taylor Swift adorably sang at a 2002 Sixers game

In the spring of 2002, the Philadelphia 76ers had a blank space on their list of national anthem performers, so they wrote the name of a 12-year-old from nearby Wyomissing: Taylor Swift. (Sorry. That song is just so darn catchy.)

The music superstar’s first major showcase was singing The Star-Spangled Banner before a Sixers game. Wearing an American flag sweatshirt and headband, Swift is almost unrecognizable — until you turn up the volume.

A 2011 New Yorker article describes how the national anthem performance came at a time when Swift was distancing herself from childhood friends and taking an interest in becoming a country-music force.

In that case, you could legitimately make the argument that Allen Iverson is directly responsible for the meteoric rise of Taylor Swift.

(Thanks to Vulture for sharing this video.)