Soul legend Bettye LaVette says she is “so disappointed” that Beyonce mimed the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ at President Obama’s inauguration.
Barack Obama and Bettye LaVette
A day after the President was sworn in for his second term it was revealed that Beyonce lip-synched the American National Anthem at the ceremony.
“I was so disappointed that after all this time I break down to give this compliment,” Bettye said in an interview with Noise11.com. “My husband was stunned when I said it. Then I was embarrassed because I know how vocally the challenges there are in that song. I certainly wouldn’t have sung it that way. I was just giving her this high praise and then we got this news today. I was so disappointed”.
Bettye comes from that old school of real singers who record their own voices to record and perform live on stage. “I told my husband, who hates her,” she said. “I said she looks fabulous and I think she sang the song flawlessly. Then I heard she did it in the studio and I said, ‘shit, Louis Armstrong was flawless in the studio’”.
Today it was revealed that the performances were pre-recorded “ as a matter of course” to avoid technical problems during the live broadcast.
Bettye LaVette will perform at Bluesfest at Byron Bay over Easter and also:
April 4, Melbourne, The Corner
April 5, Sydney, The Factory Theatre
