Mariah Carey has found herself at the centre of online criticism after 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 got underway.
She performed the classic song Volare, but it did not take long for viewers to question whether she was singing live.
Many watching the event, both inside the San Siro and at home, felt her vocals did not match her mouth movements.
Social media reaction was swift and unforgiving.
Several viewers pointed out that Carey appeared to be moving her lips more slowly than the track being heard, while others felt she was making 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 post read, “Some of the most awful 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 is stiff, lip syncing and looks like she’s reading off a teleprompter.”
As clips of the performance circulated online, criticism continued to build.
“mariah carey lip syncing looks awfully off,” one user posted, while another said, “The worst part is that Mariah Carey isn’t even trying to hide the fact she’s lip syncing.”
Some fans appeared particularly disappointed given the scale of the event.
“Mariah Carey ain’t even singing this st smh hate lip syncing,” one person wrote, while another added, “Mariah Carey is lip syncing at the f*ing 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,” one user posted.
Carey, 55, does not have 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 fuelled the disappointment among viewers who expected a live performance.
As the Olympics continue, the moment has remained a talking point online, with fans debating whether such a high-profile ceremony should allow lip-synced performances at all.
