Jennifer Hudson lip-synced "The Star Spangled Banner"

[Admin]

Personally I don't think this is that big of a deal and I actually think it's smart to pre-record it since you can't have a major screw up at a big event like that but it apparently some people get pretty upset about it.

http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/tur...owl-anthem.html

Jennifer Hudson used a backing track for her dramatic version of “The Star Spangled Banner” Sunday at the Super Bowl, the pre-game show’s producer says.

Ricky Minor, the producer, told the Associated Press after the performance that he insisted that Hudson use the vocal track she submitted to the NFL a week before the game instead of singing live.

“That’s the right way to do it,” Minor said. “There … [are] too many variables to go live. I would never recommend any artist go live because the slightest glitch would devastate the performance.”

Representatives for Hudson and the NFL did not respond to email and voice-mail messages requesting comment. But it is typical of performers at big stadium events to use backing tracks. Artists from U2 to Madonna make extensive use of pre-recorded music at their concerts. And most Super Bowl renditions of the national anthem, as well as numerous halftime performances, have been lip-synched.

What’s unclear is if Hudson sang along with the backing track, or simply lip-synched. Her breathing patterns, including a couple of audible sighs, indicate that she may have been singing, but it’s difficult to prove.

Minor also told the Associated Press that Faith Hill, who preceded Hudson with a performance of “America the Beautiful,” used a backing track.

Should the NFL have come clean with viewers about whether they were seeing a live performance before the singers put microphones to their lips?

[Plainview1981]

Personally I don't think this is that big of a deal and I actually think it's smart to pre-record it since you can't have a major screw up at a big event like that but it apparently some people get pretty upset about it.

http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/tur...owl-anthem.html

Pathetic. Of course things aren't going to be perfect live. If you want a perfact performance, listen to the freakin albums or something. Seriously, these people are a bunch of frauds. If it's pre-recorded, don't call it live.

Edited February 3, 2009 by Hotlanta1981

[AHF]

Pathetic. Of course things aren't going to be perfect live. If you want a perfact performance, listen to the freakin albums or something. Seriously, these people are a bunch of frauds. If it's pre-recorded, don't call it live.

That is my view. I am not going to pay a dime to go see a performer lip sync their material on "tour." I am with Hudson here, good for her.

[Plainview1981]

That is my view. I am not going to pay a dime to go see a performer lip sync their material on "tour." I am with Hudson here, good for her.

I'm surprised that Dolfan doesn't have a bigger problem with someone fake singing the national anthem because it is "to risky" to perform live when soldiers are over there getting shot up and putting their lives on the line.

[Admin]

I'm surprised that Dolfan doesn't have a bigger problem with someone fake singing the national anthem because it is "to risky" to perform live when soldiers are over there getting shot up and putting their lives on the line.

From the way I read the article it's not that it's too risky for the performer, it's too risky for the venue. They are just trying to keep from having a totally f'd up performance of our national anthem in front of the entire world and I can't blame them because they are worried that a battery could go dead, the mic could go out, etc. It's not that the artist can't sing it properly it's just not worth the chance of something extraneous going haywire and trust me from my experience as a soldier on deployment if it had gotten screwed it up (her fault or not) it would have been a lot more demoralizing than finding out later on that it was lip synced. You never really understand how powerful that song is until you're in some 3rd world country and all you want to do is see your family, drive to the mall, see a movie in a theater, etc. That song really drives home how much you miss the U.S. and it means a lot to the soldiers to hear it done well.

[AHF]

I'm surprised that Dolfan doesn't have a bigger problem with someone fake singing the national anthem because it is "to risky" to perform live when soldiers are over there getting shot up and putting their lives on the line.

Well, anything looks trivial in comparison to that. I think this is more along the lines of the choreographed opening ceremonies for the Olympics this past year. It isn't something that is morally outrageous to present a performer lip syncing, but I prefer the authenticity of a live performance. The only thing that is truly wrong is claiming it is "live" when it isn't.

And don't forget the upside. Remember the absolute hilarity of Ashlee Simpson's SNL "jig" when her prerecording went wrong?

So, I can see from a television producer's perspective wanting to nail down every detail and eliminate as much uncertainty as possible from my production - I just don't agree with the choice to eliminate truly live performances. It would not have been nearly as exciting to get a pre-recorded Whitney Houston.

[Plainview1981]

From the way I read the article it's not that it's too risky for the performer, it's too risky for the venue. They are just trying to keep from having a totally f'd up performance of our national anthem in front of the entire world and I can't blame them because they are worried that a battery could go dead, the mic could go out, etc. It's not that the artist can't sing it properly it's just not worth the chance of something extraneous going haywire and trust me from my experience as a soldier on deployment if it had gotten screwed it up (her fault or not) it would have been a lot more demoralizing than finding out later on that it was lip synced. You never really understand how powerful that song is until you're in some 3rd world country and all you want to do is see your family, drive to the mall, see a movie in a theater, etc. That song really drives home how much you miss the U.S. and it means a lot to the soldiers to hear it done well.

The bottomline is that it's still a fake LIVE performance. It's not real. Why have her show up at all? Live performance is not about perfection. That's why it's LIVE performance. It doesn't matter if it's her voice or not. It's not right then and there. It's pre-recorded. Which means it isn't live. People don't care because people have got to used to scripted "Reality TV" and such. That's what it is.

Honestly, this makes America look like the land of the fraud more than anything. Fake performers. Not atleast I can laugh at them when I see them faking it and calling it something that it isn't. It's just unbelievable that people accept fakeness. If you can't pull it off live, don't try to give the illusion that you can.

I mean, if they can't pull it off live in certain places, just say that you can't and play the pre-recorded track. Why bother to put on a fake show? It's just really lame. Really lame.

Edited February 3, 2009 by Hotlanta1981

[AHF]

Honestly, this makes America look like the land of the fraud more than anything. Fake performers. Not atleast I can laugh at them when I see them faking it and calling it something that it isn't. It's just unbelievable that people accept fakeness. If you can't pull it off live, don't try to give the illusion that you can.

As China showed so eloquently, this isn't just an "America" issue but I agree on both reality TV and these types of performances that it insults my intelligence to pretend they are truly real or live.

[Plainview1981]

As China showed so eloquently, this isn't just an "America" issue but I agree on both reality TV and these types of performances that it insults my intelligence to pretend they are truly real or live.

That's what I'm saying. There is no need to pretend you can do something that you can't. You shouldn't mislead people. That's the part people should be upset about. I usually skip these events anyway. I can't remember the last time I watched a SB halftime show. I didn't even watch the game. But that doesn't stop this from being lame.

[AHF]

That's what I'm saying. There is no need to pretend you can do something that you can't. You shouldn't mislead people. That's the part people should be upset about. I usually skip these events anyway. I can't remember the last time I watched a SB halftime show. I didn't even watch the game. But that doesn't stop this from being lame.

For what it is worth, I think Bruce was actually live at halftime. That boggles the mind a bit considering that the halftime show is about 1000x more complex from a production standpoint than the star spangled banner but there you go.

[TroyMcClure]

For what it is worth, I think Bruce was actually live at halftime. That boggles the mind a bit considering that the halftime show is about 1000x more complex from a production standpoint than the star spangled banner but there you go.

You guys do realize that the greatest singing of the national anthem was actually a recording, right? Whitney was lip-syncing during the great Giants-Bills SB. Does that change how you feel?

One thing that Hot is missing, is that the anthem should be perfect. It's not about showing your talent or misleading someone. They don't sing the anthem so Hot can decide if he thinks they have talent and whether he should buy their album or not. That's usually an edited recording from a studio, btw. They sing, or play the anthem for us to feel pride and have a sense of Americanism. Jeez.

[AHF]

You guys do realize that the greatest singing of the national anthem was actually a recording, right? Whitney was lip-syncing during the great Giants-Bills SB. Does that change how you feel?

Yes - it cheapens it for me.

:sad:

Am I supposed to be equally inspired if I hear Whitney's pre-recorded voice coming out of Britney Spears? How about an automotronic version of Whitney that looks just like her? Does it make a difference if there is any truthfulness to the performance for you?

It is a beautiful rendition regardless and has to be appreciated for that, but it is an illusion and deceit when presented as authentically live and that detracts from its significance. I have no problem with the decision to pre-record when there is no fiction about it being live.

[Plainview1981]

You guys do realize that the greatest singing of the national anthem was actually a recording, right? Whitney was lip-syncing during the great Giants-Bills SB. Does that change how you feel?

One thing that Hot is missing, is that the anthem should be perfect. It's not about showing your talent or misleading someone. They don't sing the anthem so Hot can decide if he thinks they have talent and whether he should buy their album or not. That's usually an edited recording from a studio, btw. They sing, or play the anthem for us to feel pride and have a sense of Americanism. Jeez.

Play it over the speakers or whatever. Don't put on a fake show. It's just dumb.

[macdaddy]

I just don't even know what the point of lip-syncing is. Why not just play the recording and not even have the person there. I really didn't think lip syncing the national anthem was an option. I don't care much about pop stars lip syncing their songs but the national anthem? You get paid to sing it and do it right because you are a professional singer. It just seems not in keeping with the spirit of singing it before every game to come out and fake it.

Plus i lost a dollar on it because I just didn't think they'd do that.

[TroyMcClure]

Yes - it cheapens it for me.

:sad:

Am I supposed to be equally inspired if I hear Whitney's pre-recorded voice coming out of Britney Spears? How about an automotronic version of Whitney that looks just like her? Does it make a difference if there is any truthfulness to the performance for you?

It is a beautiful rendition regardless and has to be appreciated for that, but it is an illusion and deceit when presented as authentically live and that detracts from its significance. I have no problem with the decision to pre-record when there is no fiction about it being live.

I agree with you, but in the vacuum of the national anthem, I disagree. It doesn't really bother me. There are a number of last minute issues that could arise when dealing with only one instrument. Especially when it is a human one. In Whitney's case, we had just started Desert Storm and the moment was truly inspiring and patriotic for the whole country. There were old men crying in the stands and across America, I presume. She really sold the performance. The end justified the means, imo.

As for Hudson, I think if anyone deserves to be cut a little slack, it is her.

Edited February 3, 2009 by TroyMcClure