Mariah Carey found herself at the center of online criticism following her appearance at the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, where fans accused the singer of lip-syncing during her performance.
The American star opened part of the ceremony wearing a flowing white dress as the Winter Games officially began.
She performed the classic song Volarebut it didn’t take long for viewers to wonder if she was singing live.
Many people who watched the event, both inside San Siro and at home, felt that his voice did not match the movements of his mouth.
The social media reaction was swift and merciless.
Several viewers pointed out that Carey appeared to move her lips more slowly than the track heard, while others felt she made little effort to hide it.
One user wrote during the performance: “I haven’t seen a worse lip sync performance than this in years.”
Another article read: “Some of Mariah Carey’s most horrible lip syncs [facepalm emoji] Come on Italy, you have your own singers!!”
Others echoed similar frustration, with one viewer commenting: “Witnessing Mariah Carey at the 2026 #Olympics Opening Ceremony…she’s stiff, lip syncing and looks like she’s reading from a teleprompter.”
As clips of the performance circulated online, criticism continued to mount.
“Mariah Carey’s lip syncing looks awfully bad,” one user posted, while another said, “The worst part is that Mariah Carey doesn’t even try to hide the fact that she’s lip syncing.”
Some fans seemed particularly disappointed given the scale of the event.
“Mariah Carey doesn’t even sing that hate lip sync,” one person wrote, while another added: “Mariah Carey lip syncs at the fucking Olympics.”
Others wondered why Carey was chosen.
“I don’t really understand why American Mariah Carey is lip syncing at the opening ceremony in Milan,” one user posted.
Carey, 55, has no Italian heritage, having been born to a father of Irish descent and an Afro-Venezuelan mother.
However, she has an operatic background and is widely known for her impressive vocal range, which only fueled the disappointment of viewers who were expecting a live performance.
As the Olympics continue, the moment remains a topic of discussion online, with fans wondering whether such a high-profile ceremony should allow lip-synched performances.
