While most already had some inkling about Britney Spears’ lack of perfect vocal talent, the untouched leaked version of “Alien,” from her album Britney Jean, is still a bit shocking. While it’s no secret the 32-year-old uses quite a bit of auto-tune, to touch up the vocals on the majority of her hits, it was surprising to hear just how different her unaltered her voice is.
Since the audio was leaked on July 2, it has received a lot of flack from fans and critics, as cyberspace boomed with reactions.
Yet the song’s producer, William Orbit, was quick to release a statement on his Facebook page, defending the leaked track as being a quick warm-up version of the song. He writes:
“Dearest Music Lovers,
I have heard that Britney vocal link that everybody’s been discussing. It has been impossible not to as there have been many comments directing my attention to it. [I won’t re-posting it here]. I’d like to affirm that ANY singer when first at the mic at the start of a long session can make a multitude of vocalisations in order to get warmed up.
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.
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’.
I think that 99% of you reading this will totally understand.
Whomever put this on the internet must have done so in a spirit of unkindness, but it can in no way detract from the fact that Britney is and always will be beyond Stellar! She is magnificent! And that’s that.
Sincerely, William”
Check out the untouched version below and judge for yourself.
