DeSantis Orders 'Seminole Wind' Installed as Florida's Anthem

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order Tuesday designating "Seminole Wind," the 1992 John Anderson recording, as Florida's anthem. The song joins the state anthem, "Florida, Where the Sawgrass Meets the Sky," set in 2008, and the state song, "Old Folks At Home." The order cites the track's role in advancing restoration of the Everglades.

Anderson, an Apopka native and Country Music Hall of Fame inductee in 2024, died last week in Tennessee at 71. He was born Dec. 13, 1954, graduated from Apopka High School, and left for Nashville to pursue music. He began playing in garage bands in seventh grade and set his sights on a professional career at 12, per his Hall of Fame bio. His other recordings include "Straight Tequila Night" and "Swingin.'" "Seminole Wind" appeared on his twelfth album, released February 1992, with the title track following as a single that August.

The governor also directed the Secretary of State to place historical markers in Apopka and assigned the Department of Environmental Protection and the St. Johns River Water Management District to name a wildlife drive and trail system John Anderson Wildlife Drive. The executive order states that the song has served as Florida's unofficial anthem since 1992 and honors residents across the peninsula, including the Seminole Tribe of Florida's Osceola.

Anderson's verified Facebook page records his love of the outdoors and asked fans to mark his passing with donations to the Bass Pro Shops & Cabela's Outdoor Fund, which backs conservation work in North America.

The lyrics run: "So blow, blow Seminole wind, blow like you're never gonna blow again.." and travel "from the Okeechobee, all the way up to Micanopy." DeSantis announced the designation through a post on X.