Success is a fickle thing that can disappear
in the blink of an eye. These aspiring mega-stars were really going
places — before one flip comment, brash action, or untimely revelation stopped their
careers in their tracks. Maybe it's just a little mistake, but add
live TV to the mix, and you've got a recipe for disaster. Record skips German R&B and dance pop duo Milli Vanilli
rose to prominence at the end of the eighties with crossover hits such as "Girl You Know
It's True" and "Blame it on the Rain," selling millions of records, and earning the duo the
trophy for best new artist at the 1990 Grammys. "Milli Vanilli." But to anyone paying close attention, the
group's musical chops didn't hold up. First, the guys' voices didn't quite sound
like their recordings, prompting questions from the press. But the moment that destroyed their careers
happened live, well, live on tape. The duo was performing "Girl You Know It's
True" when the backing track began to skip — revealing Milli Vanilli wasn't actually
singing at all. MTV recorded the entire concert live with the intention of playing it back at a later date. but the record skipping altered that plan slightly. "Girl you know it"
"Girl you know it" "Girl you know it"
"Girl you know it" "Girl you know it" In a media blitz, the duo were labeled as
frauds, lawsuits were filed, and fans demanded refunds for albums. Their Grammy was revoked, and they never performed
again. Technical issues Ashlee Simpson, the punk rock little sister
of singer Jessica Simpson, was on her way up when she booked a spot on SNL in October
2004. Her first album, Autobiography, had recently
debuted to commercial success, with significant radio play for her singles "Shadow" and "Pieces
of Me." But when her SNL performance experienced a
technical hiccup, it exposed a fatal flaw in Ashlee's act. "On a Monday I am waiting, on a Tuesday, I
am fading…" She wasn't actually singing. And the backlash hit hard. During her performance at the 2005 Orange
Bowl, her live vocals were drowned out by a thunderous roar of boos. Her followup album, I Am Me, sold roughly
a third of the copies in the United States that her debut did. Immediately after the lip-sync incident, which
garnered national news coverage, her fans turned on her, and her music career never
recovered. And naturally, SNL has played host to plenty
of other disastrous, career-ending moments on live television. Hot topic Irish singer Sinead O'Connor used her spot
as musical guest on a 1992 episode of SNL to make a political statement — and a rather
provocative one at that. Concluding an a cappella performance of the
Bob Marley song "War," O'Connor sang her last lines while reaching for a photograph of John
Paul II — and then she tore it to pieces. "Fight the real enemy." The move torpedoed the singer's burgeoning
career in the U.S., and turned many people off her music, branding her as a high-risk,
controversial act — a reputation she's maintained to this day. But that wasn't even the worst career ender
on SNL — for that, we have to go all the way back to the early 1980's... Network take-down With an untested cast under the guidance of
new producer Jean Doumanian , the 1980 to 81 season of SNL started badly and got worse. The show dragged on throughout the winter
as a national joke — its own sketches displaying a sharp awareness of its declining quality. An historic low was reached in the 11th episode
of the season, when cast member Charles Rocket dropped the F-bomb. "It's the first time I've been shot in my
life. I'd like to know who the f--- did it." It was the last straw for the studio, which
began cleaning house promptly after the episode aired. But Rocket actually came dangerously close
to sinking the entire show. NBC also fired Doumanian, and SNL went off
the air for a month. By the time it returned, the show had replaced
most of its writing staff and was in the process of purging every single one of its cast members,
except Joe Piscopo and Eddie Murphy — the sole survivors of a disastrous era. Too harsh On New Zealand's version of The X Factor,
one singer-turned-judge definitely crossed the line. British singer Natalia Kills lit into contestant
Joe Irvine in 2015. "Ladies and gentlemen I'm just going to state
the obvious we have a doppelgänger in our midst" Kills essentially accused him of copying his
act and persona from her own husband, singer Willy Moon, who was also sitting on the panel
as a judge. The intensity of Kills' disgust turned off
viewers in droves, and both Kills and Moon were soon removed from the judging panel. For his troubles, Irvine reportedly received
consolations and cupcakes from fellow singer Lorde, but he told the New Zealand Herald
in 2016 that he's still traumatized. Roasted Comic Doug Williams found himself in the hot
seat at Shaq's All Star Comedy Roast of football player Emmitt Smith. Following an introduction by host Jamie Foxx,
Williams' set started slowly, but about three jokes in, Foxx began sniping at the comic,
mocking Williams' punchlines and all but telling him to get off of the stage. "where is he right now?" We're here for Emmitt Smith. Do you have any jokes for him tonight?" Foxx later defended his actions, calling his
barrage, quote, "very dark liquor-induced." While the production wasn't broadcast live,
there were no second takes for Williams. His bomb of a set lives forever online. Two words The first day on a new job is always stressful,
especially if your job subjects you to the scrutiny of everyone who might be tuned into
the Bismarck local news. Aspiring young broadcaster, AJ, let his anxiety
get the best of him, right off the bat. "F------ s---." Clemente was promptly fired from the station
and supposedly hasn't helmed a broadcast since. "Did you think your life was finished when
it happened?" "Extremely. I went home, crawled in bed, and called my
parents." The scream During the 2004 presidential election, Democratic
contenders lined up for the chance to contest Republican incumbent George W. Bush for the
White House. Vermont governor Howad Dean had an impressive
lead over opponents Dennis Kucinich and John Kerry in early polls. But as the race went on and Kerry closed the
gap, the margin for error got smaller and smaller. Chastened by a rough showing at the Iowa caucuses,
Dean addressed a crowd with a rousing speech, making big promises to supporters. And then this happened: "(the scream)" The media destroyed him. "(the scream)" Any chances his campaign even had of coming
back, were terminally derailed. "(the scream)" But at least it gave us this classic Dave
Chappelle moment: "then I'm coming to Washington DC to take
back the White House…" "BYEOOAAAHWWWW" Thanks for watching! Click the Nicki Swift icon to subscribe to
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