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January 7, 2017 editorial: comments

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Topic January 7, 2017 editorial: comments

Smoke and Mirrors

Happy New Year! I hope yours was a lot happier than Mariah Carey's. In case you hadn’t heard, she had a bit of a meltdown during an appearance on the New Year's Rockin' Eve telecast. You could tell that something wasn't right through her first couple of songs, and by the third, her lips were so out of sync with the vocals it looked like a badly dubbed movie.

Apparently there was something wrong with her monitor mix, and partway through the third song she gave up in frustration, and stopped even pretending to sing. Meanwhile, her recorded lead vocal played on.

In an account of the Carey incident in the New Yorker, a network executive is quoted as saying that it’s considered “safer” to lip-sync for a TV appearance than to actually sing. I’m sorry, to me, that’s cheating. If you lip sync to a recording, it’s not a performance, it's smoke and mirrors.

Lip-syncing seems to be particularly common in the pop world. My theory is that if you see dancers on the stage behind the singer, there’s a good likelihood that the vocal is lip-synced. Why? Because it’s an indication that the artist considers the spectacle more important than the music.

Carey, or her management, perhaps, clearly decided it wasn’t worth the risk for her to actually sing on the telecast—they thought the safer route was to fake it. But, as it turned out, the opposite was true. A couple of flat or sharp notes wouldn’t have been nearly as embarrassing as what transpired on that Times Square stage.

I have more respect for a singer like Adele, who was at least trying to sing at last year’s Grammys, in what turned out to be a disastrously pitchy performance—also due in part to technical issues in her monitoring system. While I’ll admit to feeling a bit of schadenfreude from seeing somebody at that level mess up like that, at least she was actually singing. For Carey, I have no such sympathy. She was faking it, and she got busted.

Next time, Mariah, try singing. You might even enjoy it more—and the audience certainly will. Oh, and lose the dancers.

2
Agree it's cheating. They should have to advertise perform lip sync live.
3
As a performer I HATE seeing someone on the professional level lip-sync. There are really no excuses for it. But, I understand why it happens. Not practicing, not being there for sound checks, being a diva and showing up in time to walk on the stage and leave as soon as you get paid.
That said, it's the music industry who is to blame. Since most "tours" serve to pay back the record companies. While the music and merchandising sales go up, they make more money. So, if an artist gets sick, let them lip-sync and perform anyway. Make it a huge production with dancing everywhere and have them fake the music since they will be out of breath.
I don't care how big a star gets they need to practice. They need to review. They need to put the effort into performing live that it demands. Sure it can get boring but it's part of the process. Every theater production, concert, gig, I've been a part of, we worked our butts off and it shows in the end.

Oh yeah, and don't blame the sound guys. Crap brakes all the time. How it's handled is what sets the pros apart.
4
Not sure if the intention was for Mariah to lip-synch to a full track or to sing to a backing track (less vocal). In either case, her in-ear monitor was an issue and took her down hard. Just goes to show the importance of having your own team check your gear prior to a performance...
5
Seriously, you think she has anything to say about it? I'd be will to bet performers for such an important broadcast have NO say over lip syncing or not. Considering she pretty damn good--though I personally don't care whit for her or her music--I'd find it hard to believe she couldn't sing if she wanted to.
6
I can accept that there are some situation where lip-synching might be justified. If it's on the deck of an Aircraft carrier, and it's a scene in a movie, well OK, but I'm with you. A singer shouldn't be paid to stand on a stage and move her mouth convincingly, and the audience deserves to be told what they're paying for.

They're singers, not national heroes, and it's time to stop letting them fake it just because they're celebrities or because they wiggle their little tushies.
7
Happy New Year, Mike!

That's what happens when you conduct yourself as a supreme diva. When things don't go according to plan, you walk off in a frustrated huff. However, she can always take comfort in the fact that she has a lot of company in this increasingly onstage, non-professional behavior. The list is long, and getting longer. The crazy part? When she's on her game, her voice is not bad (when compared to many of today's "studio" singers). "lip-syncing" sucks! And, it sucks, big time! It's crazy how this form of fraudulent singing does not seem to bother today's younger audience. Imagine someone like Miles Davis "trumpet syncing" at a live venue. Or, even more preposterously, an entire band "syncing" at a live concert? The audience would be more than justified in their outrage.

My dear, sweet mother (formerly an accomplished opera singer) said that Mariah has been given far too many passes from her management; and that her recent behavior is the sheer result of a corrosive habit of undisciplined preparedness. I agree. One would think that with all of her years as an onstage performer, she would have been better able to deal with the situation. Unfortunately, onstage "meltdowns" these days appear to be the norm, rather than a rarity. I'm totally fed up with the lot of 'em.
8
I couldn't agree more about the comparison between "The Carey" and Adele performances. Difference of HONESTY, PROFESSIONALITY, ARTISTRY are enough to me. And I am not an Adele fan!

When I sing in some pubs or other places where perfect monitoring is utopic, I still have the ability to stay in pitch and deliver a nice performance; am I a phenomenon? Don't think so.

And with all the money involved in TV production, I absolutely can't accept that an artist will not be allowed to perform really LIVE with all the technology available today!
Reality is not TV, and viceversa.
9
True, true, on the smoke and mirrors of. the diva exposed. As Mike Levine has so aptly put it, you have to always give credit to those who labor to give genuine performances without all the smoke and mirrors. Rarely do such performances receive the accolades and acknowledgement deserving. I think this is quite possibly because those who comprehend and appreciate 'true' talent and amazing music performance are 'a cut above' the average listener. The average listener has to have their experience augmented by lights, dancing and other showmanship to have their experience become meaningful. Sadly, most of these people have never played a musical instrument or have really tried to sing to a level that is pleasing to the ears around them. How many fallen divas do we need before we return to appreciating authentic performance? Sadly, it will never happen in mass because most cannot go there. Kudos to the struggling performers and those of us appreciative listeners because we are unique and capable of experiencing what is really important and truly uplifting in a live performance. Thanks Mike for your poignant commentary on Mariah's performance and the opportunity for us reflect on your thoughts and respond. cheers for 2017!
10
Great comments everyone. Keep 'em coming! Thanks! Happy New Year!