Did Shakira Use Playback In 'Empire' Performance on 'The Voice USA'? - Watch Now!
The live shows of Season 6 of 'The Voice' began airing this week on NBC. And you know the live shows mean live performances by guest stars. Although the first performer of this season wasn't that much of a guest. It was one of the very coaches!
Colombian singer Shakira took to 'The Voice' stage on Tuesday, April 22, to perform her new single 'Empire', off of her March-released self-titled tenth album. The epic ballad is the official follow-up to 'Can't Remember To Forget You' in all territories.
'Empire' hasn't been officially sent to US radios yet but it's already having a great start. The song climbed four spots in the last week, going from #40 to #36. That's right. 'Empire' is already a Top 40 hit on Pop radio. Not too bad!
As for her 'The Voice' performance last night, which will certainly give the single an extra push, it overall received mixed reviews by fans. Fans were confused. And they expressed that confusion on Twitter, saying they didn't know if her favorite singer was lip-syncing or not. Shakira using playback? And in a singing competition? Impossible, right?
Well, truth is Shakira did use playback (boo!). But only in the chorus...which is heavily edited with vocal effects. The verses were all her live vocals, as you can hear her breathing. Still...an artist of the scale of Shakira, and knowing she was in a singing competition, should have found a way to not use playback at all in the chorus. Perhaps hire back-up singers for next time? Still, not a bad performance!