Rihanna performs onstage during the Apple Music Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show at State Farm Stadium on February 12, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. Photo / Getty Images
Rihanna performs onstage during the Apple Music Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show at State Farm Stadium on February 12, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. Photo / Getty Images
Many sharp-eyed social mediausers are accusing the Diamonds popstar of “lip-syncing” during her show, with some calling the performance the “worst ever” breach in the history of Super Bowl halftime shows.
What was her first solo performance since 2016 went without a hitch, showcasing a medley of the star’s greatest hits from Umbrella to Work in just 13 minutes. If that didn’t impress fans enough, the What’s My Name songstress announced her pregnancy with her second child, holding her belly during various parts of the show.
What followed was an uproar of praise on social media with fans claiming the singer had made a “powerful statement” for women globally.
However, Rihanna’s crowd-pleasing rendition of Umbrella didn’t stop self-proclaimed music critics from raining on the star’s parade.
Rihanna performs during the halftime show at the NFL Super Bowl 57 football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 12. Photo / AP
Others chimed in with the former US President, accusing the pop star of miming the words to her songs that were accompanied with prerecorded tracks instead of singing live at the halftime show.
“Amazing how Rihanna is able to keep singing even when she puts the mic aside and doesn’t move her lips at all,” snarked one viewer of her alleged reverse karaoke.
“Too bad Rihanna is lip-syncing,” lamented another along with footage of her cover of Kanye West’s “All of the Lights,” in which her lips and lyrics seem to sync about as well as a kung-fu movie dub.
“You know I love you but that’s the worst lips sync ever. OMG,” tweeted another detractor, while one wrote, “Lip-syncing at the Super Bowl should not be allowed.”
A disappointed fan fumed, “Rihanna not even having the mic near her mouth while the lyrics are playing. Why bother doing the halftime show if you’re not even gonna try and lip sync, bizarre.”
Question: is watching someone lip sync and touch their butt and sniff it considered to be high class entertainment in the 21st century? 😂😂😂😂😂😂https://t.co/e49A35miPu
Rihanna is only one of the many singers who have been accused of lip-syncing during a Super Bowl halftime performance, with other alleged culprits including the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Katy Perry.
However, mouthing the words to lyrics isn’t the con its cracked up to be. According to NFL policy, rehearsals for halftime performances are prerecorded live, so stars can sing over it as much or as little as they want to as a musical safety net on the big night. Many performers opt for the former so that they can put all their energy into the often-elaborate choreography that accompanies the performances.
Former Super Bowl LVII performer Sheryl Lee Ralph also received criticism for lip-syncing during her dazzling halftime show, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Ralph responded: “Does it matter? Does it matter? No. Thank you.”
