Mariah Carey has found herself at the center of online criticism following her performance at the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, with fans accusing 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 got under way.
She performed the classic song Volarebut it didn’t take long for viewers to question whether she was singing live.
Many who watched the event, both inside the San Siro and at home, felt that her vocals did not match her mouth movements.
The reaction on social media was swift and unforgiving.
Several viewers pointed out that Carey appeared to be moving her lips slower than the track being heard, while others thought she made little effort to hide it.
One user wrote under the performance, “I haven’t seen a worse lip-sync performance than this in years.”
Another post read: “Some of the most horrible lip syncing by Mariah Carey [facepalm emoji] come on Italy, you have your own singers!!”
Others echoed similar frustration, with one viewer commenting: “Witnessing Mariah Carey at the #Olympics2026 opening ceremony … she’s stiff, lip-syncing and looks like she’s reading off a teleprompter.”
As clips of the performance circulated online, criticism continued to mount.
“Mariah Carey lip-syncing looks horrendously bad,” wrote one user, 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 this st smh hates lip syncing,” one person wrote, while another added: “Mariah Carey is lip syncing at the damn Olympics.”
Others questioned why Carey was chosen at all.
“I’m very confused why American Mariah Carey is lip-syncing at the opening ceremony in Milan,” wrote one user.
Carey, 55, is not of Italian heritage, having been born to a father of Irish descent and an Afro-Venezuelan mother.
However, she is trained in opera and is widely known for her impressive vocal range, which only fueled the disappointment of viewers expecting a live performance.
As the Olympics continue, the moment has remained a point of discussion online, with fans debating whether such a high-profile ceremony should even allow lip-synced performances.
