1.22.13 Sam Sparro @ WeAreFamily! Adam+Cyndi duet?

augenpoesie.... RIGHT-CLICK-SAVE!!!! 
   

Seoulmate  I PM'd you.

In defense of Beyonce lipsyncing the NA and messing with the in-ear monitors.  

1. Friggin' difficult song to sing well.  Without formal voice training, many cannot handle the range without sounding puny on the bottom or screechy on the top.

2. Anyone who screws up the NA gets pilloried in the media.  Doesn't matter how good a singer they are.  If they flub the words they are laughed at.  Like, yeah, those words trip so naturally off the tongue. NOT. I mean, what they heck is a rampart, anyway?  I had to audition for a choir once and was told to sing the NA.  Yup, forgot the words.  

3.  On big, nationally broadcast events, many producers do NOT want any surprises with sound equipment, singer flubs, surprise boo-boos, political statements, etc.  Trying to get a good sound mix and make sure that the singing is heard clearly can be difficult outdoors.  (Was it outdoors?  I didn't watch.)  Canned is reliable.  Live is a risk.

4.  If you are going to lip-sync convincingly, you still need those monitors to work so that you keep the correct tempo and move your mouth at the right time.

Having said that, IMO, lipsyncing is a cheat under almost any circumstances.  I even wish music videos were sung live.  

1.  If you can't sing the damn song well, don't agree to sing it.  Know your limitations.  There are plenty of singers who can do justice to that song.  Leave it to them, and concentrate on what you do well.

2.  Hey, it is a live event.  The attraction of the live event is that it is..... oh, I don't know..... LIVE!  It's the same reason that high wire acts in the circus are performed high in the air.  The difficulty is the same performing 6 feet off the ground, but there is no thrill of the risk.   Plus, there are these little devices called "teleprompters" that can feed you lyrics.  Or, follow Adam's example and tape a piece of paper on the stage.

3.  You spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, maybe millions, on these events.  We put a man on the moon, and we can't manage to produce a live musical performance?  

4.  Why show a singer "singing" who is not?  Why not just have interpretive dancers, a slide show of inspirational photos, snapshots of America, or, heck, synchronized swimmers or gymnasts with those ribbon thingys?  If you are going to mime singing, shouldn't you be required to wear mime makeup so we all know it is fake?  

Excuse the snark.  I'm just a purist when it comes to performing music.