14 DAY TRIAL // Earlier this month, the raw vocals (sans Auto-tune) version of Britney Spears’ track “Alien” found its way online, to the shock and the amusement of all those who never really considered her much of a singer and / or celebrity. Orbit, the producer who worked on the track, is now speaking out in defense of the pop star.
Yes, we’ve had a laugh at the track but there are some things we should know before we judge Britney’s merits, Orbit says in a statement cited by News.com.au.
First things first though: below is the leaked track, but check it out at your own peril. It’s ridiculously bad in places – in fact, it’s so bad that it even got people talking about how it must be a fake.
It’s not a fake, the producer says, but neither is it indicative of Britney’s skills. If anything, in context, this recording proves that she’s a pro.
“Warming up is essential if you’re a pro, as it is with a runner doing stretches, and it takes a while to do properly. I’ve heard all manner of sounds emitted during warmups. The point is that it is not supposed to be shared with millions of listeners,” Orbit says.
So it’s not that Britney sounds bad during warmups that’s the issue, but rather that we got to hear the result, because it was never supposed to go public.
“A generous singer will put something down the mic to help the engineer get their systems warmed up and at the right level, maybe whilst having a cup of herb tea and checking through lyrics before the session really kicks off. It’s not expected to be a ‘take’,” the producer adds.
Note how highly he speaks of Britney: not only is she a pro, but she’s also very generous because she’s helping out the sound engineer. It goes without saying, the backlash after the leak was huge, and he’s doing his best to do some damage control.
Then again, it’s not like that many people believed Britney was a very gifted vocalist. Even her fans admit to that, saying that she’s always been, first and foremost, a performer, an entertainer. This is the excuse they always have ready whenever the topic of her lip-synching is brought up.
If Britney’s “warmups” are any indication, it could be that there’s more to it: that is to say, she doesn’t sing live just because she’s doing a complicated choreography, but most likely because she can’t. What do you think? Check out the leaked audio and let us know in the comments section below.
