The American Idol Lip Sync controversy is heating up, with news from the New York Times that the American Idol group performances are nothing but lip-syncing of the worst kind. Watching American Idol contestants perform those abysmal group performances is bad enough, but to learn that American Idol Season 8 contestants are having to lip-sync songs while (obviously) struggling with Idol choreography doesn’t sit well with Idol fans.

Manfred Westphal, a spokesman for FremantleMedia North America (which produces American Idol for FOX) initially denied the Idol group performances were lip-synched by saying, “The Idols don’t lip-sync, period”.

Then we hear the lip-syncing controversy is true! “Due to extensive choreography and to balance their voices with open mikes against a screaming audience, the Idols do sing along to their own prerecorded vocal track during the group performances only”, says Westphal.

Screaming audience? Maybe screaming “Please Stop Lip-Synching the crappy group performances!” The American Idol group performances haven’t been anything to write home about and now we know why! They’re lip-synched, and it’s got to be the worst case of lip-synching we’ve seen in years.

Westphal said the contestants’ solo performances never use any recorded music or vocals, although the contestants do record their weekly song choice before the performance competition so that it will be ready for release on iTunes after the show.

Past American Idol contestant, Justin Guarini, created a firestorm of Idol controversy last week when he said, “Every single year we can’t stand the group performances. I know they can’t stand it either. And I think what makes them even worse now is that they’re lip-synched. They’re really prerecorded now.”

Guarini also said he doesn’t blame American Idol producers for having Idol contestants lip-sync group performances. “I know they are interested in making the best show possible and in caring for the contestants’ voices. It’s almost torture to watch the contestants sing and dance like they don’t have a care in the world when in fact they’re sweating bullets” over who will be voted off during the elimination results show.

Does the fact that the Idol contestants are lip-syncing the group performances come as a surprise to you, or did you already think the performances were lip-synced?