The Grace Space: Lip-Synching Scandals

Since the Super Bowl this past weekend, a lot of people have been questioning how the Red Hot Chili Peppers were able to bring the heat alongside Bruno Mars when their instruments were not even plugged in.

Well, it turns out, that was exactly the case.

Bassist and all-around badass Flea issued a statement addressing the issue, stating that the NFL held the upper hand and were not willing to budge from using a recording.

Although this fact may bring tears to some of our eyes, using a pre-recording and miming are not all that uncommon for major events like the Super Bowl. I have listed a few other so-called “lip-synching scandals” below, along with my own input as to why lip-synching was necessary (even if we weren’t a fan of faking). Enjoy!

1) Beyoncé | President Obama’s Inauguration, 2013 | “The Star Spangled Banner”

Although many individuals were incredibly pleased with President Obama’s re-election, he was not the focus of his own inauguration in January 2013. Instead, various news media outlets wanted to focus on Beyoncé’s supposed li-sync of the national anthem. The queen later confirmed that she had lip-synced, but also burst out in an a capella version of “The Star Spangled Banner” to prove that, while she did lip-sync on that cool January day, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t have the talent to perform live, as we know and love her.

2) Jennifer Hudson | Super Bowl XLIII, 2009 | “America the Beautiful”

Just like Beyoncé performing on the National Mall in January, performing “America the Beautiful” outside in February isn’t that fantastic either. But, at least Jennifer Hudson was in Tampa, not Washington, D.C. Much like the more-recent “controversy” with the RHCP, it actually wasn’t Jennifer’s choice as to whether to lip-synch or not; the Super Bowl show’s producer, “American Idol” music director Ricky Minor, requested it. Can’t blame her for that.

3) Britney Spears | VMA Awards, 2007 | “Gimme More”

As Britney’s comeback performance, everyone was excited. However, that excitement pretty much fell flat the moment Brit walked out in that sparkly black bikini and blonde weave. It was pretty obvious throughout that the former teen pop star was lip-syncing, and she was reported to have felt incredibly embarrassed by her performance. Yet, a few years later, we have our “Lucky” back.

4) Eminem | Saturday Night Live, 2013 | “Bezerk”

One of the more recent controversies was the rapper’s comeback appearance on Saturday Night Live’s Nov. 4 episode, with host Kerry Washington. The 41 year-old even brought out Rick Rubin to help him with the new track, but sadly, even Rick couldn’t help what was quite obviously lip-synched, even though there were various layered lyrics that had to be pre-recorded. Doesn’t mean I still won’t love to listen to “The Real Slim Shady” whenever I want to relive my childhood.