This definitely isn't my first time critiquing a national anthem performance. When Christina Aguilera didn't do that well as the Los Angeles Lakers' good luck charm (at least singing wise) during the NBA Finals, I compared her struggles to one of the better national anthem performances in recent memory: Amber Riley of Glee at last year's World Series.

And received a lot of hate for it in the comments.

This week my admiration for Riley's rendition was validated. She belted out the "The Star Spangled Banner" at another one of Major League Baseball's huge events — the All-Star Game — and received almost universal kudos for the performance.

So why is Riley so good at a song that so many other talented celebrities butcher? Here are the five rules Riley followed to two-time success. Take notes Christina.

1) Don't repeat the same performance

People don't dig reruns. Don't become the basic cable channel of the singing world. Without her Glee cast to back her up this time, Riley made the song her own.When she did a singing run for "the land of the free" at the World Series, she sort of lost control a little bit. Riley kept herself focused this time. She's got a steady paycheck now.

2) Do Not run for the entire song

Basically that is what ruined Christina Aguilera's attempts. She put too too much stank on "the land of the free" because she couldn't reach the note. Aguilera and Riley are both belt singers. They don't really do whistle voice (Mariah Carey's signature). Which is OK, but it makes them kind of dependent on runs. But don't do what Christina did. The key is to limit yourself to three and just three, while using more vibrato instead.

3) Do make it look effortless

Nothing creates more fandemonium like making your job look easy. Whitney Houston's "Star Spangled Banner" performance for Superbowl XXV in 1991 was amazing. Before the whole crack thing, Whitney had it. She looked like she was just at another day at work.

4) Do not move the meter of the song off a bit

Like Whitney's performance, Riley's was more fluid less bouncy. No going down or up steps unless you have a sex change or something.

5) Just sing the damn song

This rule comes in the vein of the commentator that agreed on Aguilera's bad performance: "Just sing the song and don't eff it up with all those awful runs."

It's one of the hardest songs in the world to sing well (just ask Carl Lewis). You have to follow the voices of some very loud instruments that could upstage you, mainly the brass section. Because Riley has a belting voice, she can really upstage the entire band.

Watch a master at work: