Prerecording made performance memorable

In an open letter on the Red Hot Chili Peppers website, bassist Flea admits to have faked their Super Bowl XLVIII Halftime performance Feb. 2.

Playing alongside Bruno Mars, the Red Hot Chili Peppers have confirmed that everything except the vocals was prerecorded.

The band was told by the National Football League that there was too much room for error if they played their song “Give It Away” live, so they were forced to fake the performance.

During the performance, Bruno Mars was the main focus, but the Red Hot Chili Peppers made the show a lot more fun.

They used the prerecording to their advantage and went as crazy as possible. It was entertaining, nonetheless, and they really showed what the Red Hot Chili Peppers are all about.

This kind of thing should be expected, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers shouldn’t be getting the hate they’re receiving.

Many artists have had careers ruined by prerecording, but the Red Hot Chili Peppers have been respected for decades, and their reputation is well maintained. This fiasco shouldn’t worry music fans.

Plenty of artists have goofed around in the past knowing a recording of their music would be played instead of live music. The Red Hot Chili Peppers are actually used to this kind of performance too.

They have been forced to mime on MTV and were actually thrown off of the popular English television show “The Top of The Pops” because they wanted to make a mockery of the idea that it was a real live performance.

In the open letter, Flea said the band was first apprehensive to the idea of miming, but the band eventually agreed because they were given this once in a lifetime opportunity.

“It seemed like the realest thing to do in the circumstance. It was like making a music video in front of a gazillion people, except with live vocals, and only one chance to rock it,” Flea wrote in the letter.

Flea also told of how seriously they take their live performances on their website.

“We take our music playing seriously, it is a sacred thing for us, and anyone who has ever seen us in concert, knows that we play from our heart, we improvise spontaneously, take musical risks, and sweat blood at every show,” the letter said.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers are due for a new album. Their last record, “I’m With You”, was released in 2011.

It looks like they’ll have a busy year. The band is set to play festivals throughout the rest of 2014.

Follow music columnist Andrew Helland on Twitter @DrewHelland