Top 10 On Stage Celebrity Fails

Script written by Nathan Sharp

Top 10 On Stage Celebrity Fails

Just because they’re famous doesn’t mean they don’t mess up. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 on stage celebrity fails.

For this list, we’re looking at the most embarrassing and cringe-worthy moments when celebrities slipped up while in the spotlight. These don’t need to be music-based; as long as a celebrity was on a stage for some reason, they are eligible.

#10: Justin Bieber Pukes

That’s one way to open your tour! Performing in Glendale, Arizona on the opening night of his Believe Tour, the young popstar caught the worst kind of Bieber Fever. Turning his back to the audience, he upchucks before running off stage while singing “Out of Town Girl.” It is inadvertently a defining moment for his background dancers, though, as they stick to their choreography, vomit soaked stage and all. Especially noteworthy, however, is how the Biebs is able to puke and continue to “sing” at the same time! It’s embarrassing to throw up in front of friends, so imagine doing it in front of 20,000 people…

#9: Iggy Azalea Has Earpiece Problems

If you think failing in front of 20,000 people is bad, imagine flubbing your own tune in front of fifteen million! During a live performance “Fancy” on the season finale of “Dancing with the Stars,” Iggy Azalea had a problem with her earpiece. After attempting to match her singing to the backing track, she put her hand to her ear and apologized, claiming that her earpiece wasn’t working properly before yanking it out and plowing through. Despite the fail, you have to give Iggy props, as she handled it and recovered like a pro. And at least we know that she was really singing!

#8: Janet Jackson & Justin Timberlake at the Super Bowl

During the Super Bowl halftime show in 2004, Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson were performing together when Timberlake accidentally ripped a piece of Jackson’s clothing off, exposing her breast to over 140 million people and setting an all new standard of failure. And ho boy, did the media have a field day with this one. The FCC fined CBS $550,000, a record-breaking amount at the time, while others called it proof of America’s degrading morals. YouTube inventor Jawed Karim, meanwhile, claims that this incident inspired him to create the now world-famous site. So, there’s that.

#7: Billie Joe Armstrong Goes on a Rant

During the iHeartRadio Festival, Armstrong saw that Green Day only had one minute remaining in their set, and rather than ride it out, proceeded to go on a hellish tirade. Issuing an unnecessary jab at Justin Bieber, Billie Joe curses like Tony Montana before smashing his guitar, flipping the organizers the bird, and storming offstage in a huff. Shortly after, the frontman was admitted to rehab, later telling Rolling Stone that he couldn’t “remember a word that came out of his mouth”, while bassist Mike Dirnt said he’d witnessed the “degradation” of his friend.

#6: Ashlee Simpson’s Infamous SNL “Performance”

Warning. Warning. Impending career-destroyer in 3, 2, 1. During an appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” Simpson was set to perform two songs: “Pieces of Me” and “Autobiography.” But when she was ready to start “Autobiography,” the “Pieces of Me” vocals started playing again, suggesting that she had lip-sync’d the previous song, which is just a big no-no. Rather than roll with it, or, y’know, sing, she awkwardly dances around before walking off stage. As if that wasn’t painfully cringe-worthy enough, she then went on to blame her band for playing the wrong song at the end of the episode!

#5: Steve Harvey Announces the Wrong Miss Universe Winner

If you’re looking for an unforgettable cringe, look no further. When hosting the Miss Universe 2015 pageant, Steve Harvey accidentally named the runner-up, Miss Colombia, as the winner. As she took her crown, smiled at the crowd, and bathed in the greatest moment of her life, Harvey awkwardly bumbled his way back onto the stage and declared that there was a mistake and Miss Philippines as the real winner. Contestants were confused – including Miss Philippines – while Miss Colombia was distraught, and everyone else squirmed in their seats. But hey, those “Family Feud” ratings must have shot up, right?

#4: Elizabeth Taylor Drunk at the Golden Globes

It’s not unusual for celebrities to down more than a few spritzers at the Golden Globes, but as the story goes, nobody did it quite like Elizabeth Taylor in 2001. The Golden Era Hollywood actress seemed a bit spacey when she took the podium to announce the winner for the Best Motion Picture Drama award, as she skipped over the nominees and goes straight for the envelope. Luckily, Dick Clark appeared from backstage to remind Taylor of the important first step. While she definitely bungled the delivery of this award, Taylor did it with her own brand of sass and good humor. Plus, there’s a good chance she was too bombed to remember any of it anyway.

#3: Mariah Carey Bombs at New Year’s Rockin’ Eve

This is arguably one of the biggest musical bombs in history, with Mariah Carey stumbling right from the start, and failing to do ANYTHING other than looking visibly pissed off. She then proceeds to sing small, random snippets of the song in between angry interjections about not having a soundcheck beforehand, blaming the monitors, and wanting a vacation. The fact that she doesn’t even TRY, while her dancers are doing their hardest to salvage the disaster, is just icing on the cringe cake. But, while she may not have been “good”, she may not have been “conventionally professional”, she was definitely “Mariah”.

#2: Fergie Pees Her Pants

Throwing up on stage is one thing. Peeing your pants is something else entirely. While performing with the Black Eyed Peas, Fergie peed in her pants, yet continued performing like a champ, albeit a champ with a pee-soaked crotch and wet mini-slacks. Fergie later explained that she badly needed to go to the restroom, but because the band was late to the venue, she had no time, which resulted in her on stage waterworks. She has since called the event “the most unattractive moment of my life.” It’s possibly also one of the least dignified or hygienic ones too.

Before we look at our biggest fail, here are a few honorable mentions.
- Kelsey Grammer’s Disney Tumble

- Katy Perry Slips on Her Cake

#1: Miguel Connects with the Fans

As embarrassing as the preceding events were, at least no one was physically hurt. Well, that changes now. Performing at the Billboard Music Awards, Miguel got carried away and attempted to jump over a group of audience members. Unfortunately, he missed his mark, and caught Khyati Shah in the face with the inside of his leg and smacked her head into the stage in the process, allegedly leaving her with brain trauma. To make matters worse, he then hugs another woman, apparently presuming her to be the one he hit. Meanwhile, a third lady, Cindy Tsai, eventually sued the singer and the venue for medical bills and lost wages.