'The competition isn't fake!' X Factor ****** to respond to miming accusations after contestant is caught in blatant lip-sync gaffe
It was a spectacular slip-up, when the time came for LeRoy Bell to take his turn in the ensemble rendition of U2's With or Without You, a million viewers heard his vocal BEFORE he started singing.
But if you think last night's X Factor saw the equivalent of the curtain being pulled back to reveal the Wizard of X furiously twiddling decoder knobs, you'd be wrong.
Because Simon Cowell, 51 , isn't that stupid, and today representatives for his Fox show have volunteered the information that for group performances, vocals are always prerecorded.
This might be news to most of us, but the X Factor camp insist that this little procedure ensures that contestants can pour their efforts into where it really counts, the live competitive performances.
A representative told TheWrap.com: 'All survival songs are performed live, with just a backing track.'
'For the group ensemble performance, the vocals are prerecorded to allow acts to concentrate on preparing for their own live competitive performances on Wednesdays.
