The NFL has aired three Thanksgiving Day games since 2006, finishing the night with a unique matchup after the yearly helpings of Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys football. In 2024, the Miami Dolphins will head to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers.
Who is performing at halftime, though? American violinist and dancer Lindsey Stirling will entertain the crowd on the cold Green Bay night with her unique choreographed violin performances.
When and where can you watch the Thanksgiving Night game? Here’s how to watch the Packers host the Dolphins and more about Stirling.
Who Is Lindsey Stirling?
No better way to spend Thanksgiving than with the @packers 🏈 I’ll be performing their halftime show, I’m so excited! 🦃 pic.twitter.com/IZxtQCmdyr
— Lindsey Stirling (@LindseyStirling) November 26, 2024
Stirling, born in Santa Ana, California, is the middle child of three daughters of Stephen and Diane Stirling. Her parents could only afford to find a violin teacher who would give half lessons, so she started learning to play at just five years old.
Stirling attended Mesquite High School in Gilbert, Arizona, where she and four friends formed a rock band called Stomp on Melvin. She wrote a solo violin rock song, and her performance aided her in winning the state title of Arizona’s Distinguished Young Women and took home the Spirit Award in the Distinguished Young Women Finals competition.
In 2010, Stirling was a quarter-finalist on Season 5 of America’s Got Talent. She wowed the judges by mixing hip-hop, pop, and classical music on the violin and incorporating dancing while playing the instrument, a challenging feat.
MORE: Everything To Know About Lindsey Stirling
Following her run on the show, cinematographer Devin Graham contacted her about collaborating on YouTube music videos. They agreed and filmed a video for her song “Spontaneous Me” in May 2011. Following the video’s success, Stirling started regularly releasing videos on her channel, which has amassed 14.2 million subscribers and just over 3.8 billion views.
The success of the videos, specifically “Crystallize,” which was viewed over 42 million times in 2012, helped Stirling release her eponymous debut album on Sept. 18 of the same year. Two years later, she announced her second album, “Shatter Me,” with its lead single, “Beyond the Veil.”
“Shatter Me” was nominated for Top Dance/Electronica Album at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards. Stirling would take the award home after not winning for her self-titled album the year before. Two years later, she won the award again for her third album, “Brave Enough.”
Stirling has released seven albums, two EPs, and a whopping 87 music videos, including a full-length project this year titled “Duality.”
Miami Dolphins at Green Bay Packers
- Start time: 8:20 p.m. ET
- Channel: NBC
- Live stream options: Peacock
After a rough start to the season, which included two three-game skids, Miami looked dead in the water at 2-6, even with QB Tua Tagovailoa back under center following his stint on injured reserve.
However, the Dolphins have rattled off three wins and are back in the thick of the AFC Wild Card race at 5-6. Tagovailoa has looked as sharp as he ever has, especially in the last two weeks, completing 57 of 76 pass attempts for 605 yards and seven touchdowns.
With Mike McDaniel’s offense flowing well again, the Dolphins have a massive test tonight, tasked with taking down a solid NFC playoff contender in the cold.
Will it be as cold as the playoff game in Kansas City? No, that was once in a lifetime. Still, Tagovailoa and the Dolphins have not performed well when the temperature heads below 32 degrees. That has to change tonight if Miami wants to keep its postseason dreams alive.
As for the Packers, Week 12’s domination of the San Francisco 49ers, no matter how banged up, was a sigh of relief after some challenging games the previous four weeks. The only loss for Green Bay over the past seven weeks came from the red-hot Lions. However, the Packers only beat the Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Houston Texans by a combined six points.
Green Bay’s offense has struggled to sustain drives during that stretch. But after watching Josh Jacobs take over against the 49ers, will the Packers be able to do the same to Miami?
Getting Jacobs going to alleviate pressure from a ferocious Miami pass rush could be the key to the Packers keeping up with the Lions in the standings this week.