(NEXSTAR) – Whitney Houston was undoubtedly a great singer.she national anthem The 1991 Super Bowl was definitely great as well. The song is often cited as the greatest rendition of the song ever, not only for her vocals, but also for the emotion the song conveyed during the Gulf War.
According to her producer, this was also lip-synced.
Ricky Minor, who has produced multiple Super Bowl performances (including one in Houston); said today Houston was singing live on the field. However, the version heard at his home on his television broadcast was pre-recorded.
“I never hesitate to ask questions about someone doing something or how it was done,” he said in an interview with TODAY. “Can I say live live? Yes, but then when do we stop trying to cover things up? That’s the reality. And I’m pretty sure Whitney sang it. So… My answer to that was immediately, “Yes, she was singing live.” But I used that track as audio. ”
He went on to say that the recordings used were mostly from the first takes in the Houston studio, “which is really unusual.”
Houston wasn’t the first to lip-sync to “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl, and it won’t be the last. Jennifer Hudson’s extraordinary rendition, also produced by Minor 18 years later, was lip-synced.
In fact, backup recording has been required in the NFL since 1993. Don Weiss writes in his book, The Making of the Super Bowl, that fearing disaster was approaching, he made the NFL require a recorded vocal track.
According to Weiss, country singer Garth Brooks threatened not to play the national anthem unless NBC played his music video. The two sides came to an agreement and the performance went off without a hitch, but if he had been ejected, the NFL and broadcasters would have had nothing to play for in his place.
Backup tracks are also useful if the singer’s voice is difficult to hear due to technical issues or inclement weather.
“There are too many variables to implement in practice. I would never recommend any artist perform live because the slightest glitch can ruin a performance.” told the Associated Press He spoke in an interview about the pre-game performance he produced.
Country singer Reba McEntire is scheduled to sing the national anthem at Sunday’s Super Bowl. Will she lip sync? I don’t know the answer to that, but I do know I have a backup truck just in case.
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