‘Even the owl was GAGGED girl’

Canadian pride runs deep — although some fans believe that isn’t the case for the pop star Tate McRae.

The 22-year-old “Nobody’s Girl” singer appeared in a U.S. Olympics promotional video for NBC on Tuesday, and her Canadian fans were quick to question her decision to team up with Team USA, considering that she’s from Calgary.

The 45-second promo sees McRae at the top of a mountain in the Italian Alps, where she asks an owl for directions to Milan for the opening ceremony. She goes on to gush about the weekend’s most anticipated moments — like the U.S. figure skating team’s pursuit of gold and American alpine ski racer Lindsey Vonn’s triumphant return to the sport at 41. At one point in the clip, McRae says that she’s excited to meet Team USA.

On social media, her appearance in the Team USA spot ran into backlash from Canadian fans who told the “canadian princess” she should “remember your roots.”

“Tate McRae doing a promo for NBC and Team USA for the Olympics and not Canada has me a bit sad but okay,” a user on X wrote, while another found camaraderie with the owl in the promo, writing, “even the owl was GAGGED girl.”

Other Canadians are taking potshots at McRae’s home province of Alberta, describing her “selling out for usa” the “most albertan thing she could do to be fair.” Another added, “shes literally albertan guys lock in theyre crazy.”

The online discourse seems playful enough, although some users are calling out McRae’s support of Team USA as especially tone-deaf, given the rising tensions between Canada and the United States, and the Trump administration’s continued anti-immigration crackdown.

“Every year I feel more valid in my dislike of her. Girl why are you advertising for the USA team after that country threatened to annex your actual home country of Canada? Traitor shit,” one user wrote on X. Another added, “Not the Canadian born and raised girl, promoting Team USA and wearing all red, given the state of the USA and everything Trump has said about Canada… I guess a paycheque is a paycheque?”

The “Revolving Door” singer, who’s also rumored to be dating Team USA hockey player Jack Hughes, relocated to Los Angeles when she was just 17 to pursue a career in music. During a concert soundcheck in June 2025, McRae told fans that California feels more like home to her than Calgary.

“Canada doesn’t feel like home anymore, which is weird,” she said. “Not like the country but just like the Calgary, where I’m from, feels a little less homey than LA.”

That’s not to say that McRae doesn’t like visiting her hometown. While chatting with Yahoo Canada in 2023, she revealed that she goes back to Calgary during the holidays, where she’s surrounded by “really good people.” McRae also remains a dedicated fan of the city’s NHL team, the Calgary Flames, and was recently spotted at one of their games.

“I do believe that Canadians are just genuinely, really, really good people,” she said. “When I come home, it’s always very refreshing to be around very normal, down-to-earth people.”