The U.S. Marine Band who accompanied Queen Bey said the songstress lip-synced a pre-recorded version of the national anthem at President Obama's inauguration.
- Jan 23, 2013
AceShowbiz - It was undeniably Beyonce Knowles' voice that spectators in Washington D.C. and audience at home heard on January 21. However, it was apparently a pre-recorded rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" that the R'n'B diva lip-synced to during Barack Obama's second inauguration.
Accompanied by the U.S. Marine Band, Beyonce sang the national anthem flawlessly on Monday. Nonetheless, it turns out the band director Colonel Michael J. Colburn was also only acting when he conducted the band members who were also only mimicking playing their instruments.
Those who attended the inauguration ceremony and stood close to Beyonce as she was performed said she did not sing live. The press people seated in front of the U.S. Marine Band could also tell that the band did not play live either.
A representative for the band confirmed the lip-syncing, saying, "All music [for inaugural ceremonies] is pre-recorded as a matter of course, and that's something we've done for years and years. The Marine Band did perform live throughout the ceremony but we received last-minute word that Beyonce wanted to use the recording."
Some fans were dismayed by the lip-sync, since the singer even posted on Instagram the day before a photo of herself in the studio, holding the sheet music to the national anthem in front of a microphone. Obviously now, it did not mean she was rehearsing as some would instantly assume, but was actually pre-recording it with the band.
Even during her performance, midway into her rendition, Beyonce made it appear that she seemed to have some problem with the sound equipment as she took off her inner ear monitor, so viewers initially thought her flawless rendition was being done live.
