Put aside the Sugababes issue for a moment - there's something I have to talk about.
In the UK, lip-syncing is something artists do because of the lack of equipment to sing live. When you go on GMTV performances are ALWAYS mimed because the TV studio doesn't have the right mics and stuff to let them sing 100% live. That's understandable - but not completely. I mean, these guys know there's a ton of singers killing to get on the show and they STILL don't get the equipment to accommodate them? Annoying.
However that situation isn't as bad as the one in Korea. In K-pop, artists lip-sync because of 'complicated dance routines'. Yeah, sure no human can do some of those routines while singing but hello people - THIS IS A MUSIC INDUSTRY, NOT A DANCE INDUSTRY. These guys are famous because they sing, not because they dance and their talent companies should start understanding that.
The minute you mime that means you can't perform that song while doing that dance routine. I mean yeah, dance is an art but music should always, ALWAYS be the focus - it's a song and it should be above the rest. Performing that song means singing it well first before dancing 'brilliantly' to it, these people should know that. It's disrespect to talent and music to not put it above the rest. Dammit.
The equipment is there - there are other artists who sing 100% live on these music shows so why couldn't bands like DBSK and SuJu do it before? You look for live performances of Rising Sun or even O and the only ones you'll find are mimed. If I wanted to see them dance and hear the recorded song, why would I watch the 'live' performances when there are music videos with carefully thought-of camera angles and perfect dance routines? It's practically the same thing.
The point of a live performance is to show us the artists' over-all performing skills without studio tricks and take 2s. They have one shot to get the damn routine and song right and the mistakes will prove to us that they're actually people - they make mistakes. If they don't actually sing, how are we supposed to be sure that their recordings are actually them and that they can actually sing?
Yeah, sure they sound great on recordings but those have been recorded over and over again before being put through processing, mixing, mastering and all sorts of effects to make them better than they actually are. Live performances show us how much of those recorded tracks are actually them and how much processing was put into their vocals.
Just had to let that out after not finding a single performance of DBSK's Rising Sun in Korean that's 100% live AND has all five members. So annoying. Below is a performance THREE YEARS LATER and it's STILL MIMED.
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I think miming should be a big issue for all. And I hate it when some artists get blamed (wrongly) for not being able to sing live, not knowing that it's not for the lack of talent but the facilities, as you mentioned with GMTV.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, ahhh, GMTV. :( Would've appreciated watching all those Wl performances on the show, live.
Great blog, btw. :)
could this be one of the reasons you hate my beloved britney =[ ?
ReplyDeleteJessica - It took time before I found out about the equipment problem!
ReplyDeleteProbably the only non-mimed wl TV performances I've seen or actually have are from the music channels - the primetime/rating-hog show performances are most of the time mimed.
Thanks!
j. Mensah - Even if she didn't mime I still don't like her music to start with but yes, this does contribute a bit to my dislike.