‘SNL’ gaffe exposes Ashlee Simpson

[Wolfie]

Original copy located at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6322824/

 

‘SNL’ gaffe exposes Ashlee Simpson

The teen singer may have been lip-synching her songs

The Associated Press

Updated: 5:30 p.m. ET Oct. 24, 2004

 

NEW YORK - Singer Ashlee Simpson’s “extra help” may have been exposed when a “Saturday Night Live” audience heard her voice — singing the wrong song — while she held a microphone at her waist.

 

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Her record company blamed a computer glitch and she blamed her band for Sunday morning’s incident, which cut off her planned performance of the song “Autobiography” on the network comedy show.

 

Simpson had performed her hit single “Pieces of Me” without incident earlier in the show. When she came back a second time, her band started playing and the first lines of her singing “Pieces of Me” could be heard again.

 

She looked momentarily confused as the band plowed ahead with the song and the vocal was quickly silenced.

 

Simpson made some exaggerated hopping dance moves, then walked off the stage 35 seconds into the performance. NBC quickly cut to a commercial.

 

“What can I say?” guest host Jude Law said with Simpson standing next to him at the end of the show. “Live TV.”

 

“Exactly,” Simpson said. “I feel so bad. My band started playing the wrong song. I didn’t know what to do so I thought I’d do a hoe-down.”

 

Her record company, Geffen Records, said there was a computer glitch. Instead of some pretaped electronic percussion, the recording of “Pieces of Me” started mistakenly performing, the record company said in a statement.

 

But it sounded suspiciously like a guide vocal that’s a common — although almost always unspoken — concert aid. Either the singer “lip synchs” by mouthing words to a backing tape or has a live microphone and sings along to the tape, making the voice sound more powerful than it is.

 

Such vocal tricks have been used before on the show, making “Saturday Night Live” not entirely live, said a show insider who spoke on condition of anonymity.

 

A Geffen spokeswoman did not immediately return a call for comment.

 

Simpson’s walk-off joins the lore of other unexpected music moments on “SNL”: Elvis Costello stopping and changing songs on live TV, and Sinead O’Connor tearing up a picture of the pope.

[Wolfie]

I was actually watching the show when this happened and realized immediately what was happening when you could hear her singing but saw that she wasn't singing. It didn't surprise me that she decided to step off of the stage and I think that whoever goofed up should apologize to her and to the audience for creating a problem. So she might be lip-syncing, so what. If it's her doing the singing, even if she was pre-recorded (in other words, her voice), then does it really matter? Yes I can agree that you want to see a real performance, but the truth of the matter is that a lot of performers do it for any number of reasons. They may have a cold and not sound like themselves, their voice might be partially gone, etc etc. Also if a performer is not singing, then they can dedicate more energy towards what they are doing and they won't sound out of breath. It was one mentioned that Michael Jackson and Madonna were 2 that really did perform AND sing when putting on concerts but that it was because they were physically fit to be able to do so.

 

So yeah, it ruined the moment and all, but I don't blame her, I blame whoever screwed up and put her on the spot. I'm sure she was ready and even eager to perform, and that was ruined for her and for the audience there, watching.

[Pretender]

That was a major mess up

[Wolfie]

Well she was more than welcome to visit me and.. um.. ahem..

[-Dodge-]

I agree with Wolfie (his first post). If they sang the song in the studio, don't they have some talent? I mean, if I was a famous singer, then yeah I would lip-synch for a while until I can remember the lyrics and tones.

 

I bet some of your favorite singers lip-synch. Who knows? You might be surprised.