Lipsyncing Musicians is it Really a Bad Thing?

A big wave of criticism against lip syncing musicians came in the early 1990s when Milli Vanilli won the Best New Artist Grammy, and was forced to give the award back when it was revealed that they had not provided the vocals on their album, and that their performances were actually them lip-syncing to the work of another artist.

While actually using another singer on an album is probably still rare, lip-syncing during performances is happening more and more, whether the artists are willing to admit to it or not. Some famous musicians have sworn off the practice of lip syncing.

In an article on Indiatimes.com , Miley Cyrus was quoted as stating that she would "rather someone say I sang like c**p than have people see me lip-sync," Lady Gaga expressed a similar sentiment when she was accused of lip syncing during a Madison Square Garden show, where one of her personal idols, Liza Minnelli was in attendance. " I won't be the bitch to lip-synch her way through an HBO special -- especially not in front of Liza!" Lady Gaga said.

Other artists, such as Ashlee Simpson and Britney Spears are somewhat famous for their lip syncing snafus. Critics of the practice of lip syncing claim that it cheats concert goers, or even the viewers of live TV who are expecting to hear these artist live, rather than a recording. However, I personally don't see the fuss, especially when it comes to pop music.

There is a lot more to what a pop star brings to his or her performances than their voice. The dance routines and theatrics displayed in live shows are often nothing short of acrobatic, a far cry from the days when a live concert brought little more than the lead singer pacing back and forth on stage. This is the show that audiences are going to see. Britney Spears is a far better dancer and show woman than she is a singer. If a little auto-tune and lip-syncing can help spare me from having to listen to her go horribly off key and detract from what she does well, I welcome it. I personally would prefer not to spend my time or money listening to someone sound "like c**p."

In many cases lip-syncing is actually an act of grace. I used to use the tactic myself every once in a while. No, I'm not a

pop star, but I was in choir throughout high school. And when I had a bad cold or laryngitis, I lip-synced my way through choir practice. No one needed to hear me, an off key soprano who could barely squawk out middle C, trying to fight a raspy voice and bringing down the whole choir with her. If your voice isn't there, it isn't there and there is no shame in taking one for the team '" which for a pop singer means his or her fans.

However, if a pop star is going to lip-sync during a live performance, they should be honest. Tell concert goers, " I'm dancing my patootie off, so I'm getting a little help vocally." The vast majority of people are not going to care.

If the singer actually wants to show off live vocals, they can tone down the circus act for a couple songs and give the audience a pretty ballad or something. People only feel cheated when they told they were getting one thing, and find out later they got something different '" even when the thing they thought they wanted would've probably made them cringe. Case in point, Milli Vanilli, where the people who bought the album thought they guys singing where the ones on the cover.

Speaking of Milli Vanilli, in a 2010 interview, Fab Morvan, one of the controversial members sounded off about lip syncing and auto-tune in today's pop music scene. While admitting to the dishonesty that went along with not singing on the album he raises the question as to whether or not singers who use a lot of Auto-tune on their records aren't doing the same thing. If the"person" you hear on the record is not more the machine than an authentic voice.

While I don't think it's the same thing, I will concede that Morvan makes a good point. Pop singers of all calibers are getting a lot of help these days, whether it comes by way of occasionally lip syncing or using auto-tune. Both are vocal concealers that audiences have gotten used to, and listening to artists without this "make up" is often times more than their fans can take.