Alicia Keys’ voice crack seemingly removed from NFL video of Super Bowl halftime performance

The shaky live vocals heard at the beginning of Alicia Keys’ Super Bowl performance appear to have been edited out of the official performance video uploaded to YouTube. 

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Keys made a surprise appearance during Usher’s halftime show at the American football game on Sunday (February 11), opening with a portion of her 2003 song, ‘If I Ain’t Got You’. Keys’ voice can be heard cracking while she sings the opening lyrics “some people want it all”. 

While she went on to sing on-key, fans quickly took to social media to make note of Keys’ shaky opening moments. Now, in a version of the performance uploaded to the National Football League’s official YouTube page, Keys’ off-key moment appears to have been edited out.

The alleged pitch-correction was discovered in a now-viral post shared to X (formerly known as Twitter). “Last night Alicia Keys’s voice cracked (first video),” social media user Robert Komaniecki wrote alongside a side-by-side comparison of the two clips. “Fascinatingly, the official NFL YouTube channel appears to be attempting to erase that little moment.”

The NFL has not responded to the claims of pitch-correction. See the tweet below, and watch the official halftime show video as uploaded to the NFL’s YouTube channel here.

Last night Alicia Keys’s voice cracked (first video), and fascinatingly, the official NFL YouTube channel appears to be attempting to erase that little moment, having edited it out in their upload (second video). pic.twitter.com/EM4k8rWT8c

— Robert Komaniecki (@Komaniecki_R) February 12, 2024

After the snippet of ‘If I Ain’t Got You’, Keys joined forces with Usher for a rendition of their 2004 collaboration, ‘My Boo’. Keys was one of multiple guests to appear during Usher’s halftime show, with H.E.R., will.i.am, Lil Jon and Ludacris each taking to the stage to perform hits like ‘OMG’ and ‘Yeah!’.

Elsewhere, Usher’s halftime show included a roller-skating rendition of ‘Bad Girl’, and a tribute to the late Aaron Spears, Usher’s longtime drummer who was honoured in the form of an empty drum kit on stage.

Ahead of the Super Bowl, Usher dropped a brand-new album, ‘Coming Home’. Featuring the likes of Burna Boy, Latto, and Jungkook, the record arrived on February 9. The R&B star will also be heading out on a summer tour of the US.

In other Super Bowl news, Taylor Swift attended the game to support her boyfriend Travis Kelce, tight-end of the eventual winning team Kansas City Chiefs, making headlines after downing a beer and reuniting with Paul McCartney.