Listen to this performance of Beyonce singing "If I Were a Boy" on the Today Show at Rockefeller Center. The audio is evidently what was being fed through the pitch correcter, similar to that legendary Britney video (watch it after the jump).
Real or fake? I think it's real, but to be fair, maybe she just didn't have a monitor. Either way, it's pretty hilarious. (via drunken stepfather, link nsfw]
UPDATE: Watch the version of the Today Show that America heard after the jump. It's a total studio re-recording. Why can no pop artist actually sing live anymore?
UPDATE 2: I understand that many of you want this recording not to be real, but just because an anonymous tipster emailed TMZ and Perez Hilton claiming responsibility does not mean it's fake. Just because Beyonce's dad says it's fake doesn't mean it's fake. On the contrary, if you watch the above video and then the one after the jump, you might notice that in the latter, she is obviously singing into a studio microphone. Listen to the breathing.
Now maybe the headline to this post is a bit controversial, but I believe what happened here is that Beyonce decided to lip-synch this performance, for whatever reason, and consequently did not have a monitor. This isn't to say she always lip-synchs, though I can think of two other occasions off the top of my head (see example 1, also at Rockefeller Center interestingly enough, and example 2), but I am pretty certain she did it here. If anyone can come up with more compelling proof to refute this, please post it in comments.
I always thought Beyonce was a studio creation who was just beautiful and could dance and got help with the work of studio magic...but then when I heard her sing "At Last" when the Obama's had their first dance, I saw she could really sing.
a) It's fake.
b) Her auto-tune was messed with, which does not necessarily mean she can't sing. Basically every artist uses auto-tune anyway.
But it's totally obvious that it's fake. The notes she hits are unrealistically out of pitch. Plus, if you listen closely to the echo, you'll hear that it's in tune.
Also, on the Britney thing, you do realize that Britney wasn't *trying* to sing? She was aware that she would be lip-syncing, you know, so she didn't try to sing well.
I probably will anger a lot of Beyonce fans, but I don't think she can really "sing" sing. I believe she thinks she's the best vocalists, but as someone says, she's no Whitney, Celine, or even Mariah. The word "fierce" is definitely overused nowadays. For someone who's truly fierce, I would first nominate the incredibly amazing Lauryn Hill. Her voice is rough, but also touches my heart.
I've heard her sing live, and sing spontaneously on interviews. I watched that video and it was a little off to me. If Beyonce had an off day, she'd still sound better than that! And after a singing career of 12 years, she'd obviously know she was blatantly singing the chorus off-key.
I'm not a big fan or anything, but come on people. Common sense! You can't just believe everything you see and hear.
Seriously folks... if you've never participated in a recording session (and yes, I have)...
First, not being able to hit it all the time perfect, under any conditions, doesn't mean you don't have talent or it's "fake". The studio offers virtually unlimited "do over" and splicing together the good bits. This is before you take into consideration things like pitch correcting enhancements, compression, EQ, plosive reduction, reverb...
Second, I'm especially not surprised by Brittany. Why? It's *really* hard to sing while dancing like that. Most of the problem with her voice is really due to lack of compression and EQ. Yeah, she misses some notes, but it's not nearly as bad as it might seem because it's so not-compressed, so poorly EQ'ed and filled with plosives and breathing because, well, she's dancing.
Even if they're faked... it's actually pretty close to what you'd hear, a Capella, with no enhancements, during a live performance. BTW, that's why American Idol auditions are a Capella... nowhere to hide.
Has our society deteriorated so much that we find enjoyment and pleasure out of discrediting a person's talents?
I don't know what's worse. The fact that someone actually took the time to make a video like this or the fact that, even after said person came forward and admitted what he did, people still believe the video to be real.
Move on, people! Just get the joke already and move on!
i agree with you frank. i don't think this makes her a bad singer who always lip syncs, but she definitely didn't bring her A-game knowing that the recording is what people would hear.
Disclaimers: There is material on this blog that is inappropriate for those under the age of 18. If that is you, please leave the site.
What you read here may or may not be true. We do not claim credit for any images, except where noted. Please let us know if we use your image and you would like it removed.
[[comments: 22]]
