Did Beyoncé 'mime' Star Spangled Banner at Obama's inauguration? A spokeswoman from the band which accompanied Beyoncé at Obama's inauguration yesterday has claimed that the singer did not sing the American National Anthem live on Monday, but lip-synched. A spokeswoman for the Marine Corp Band explained to The Times that it was normal proceedure to record a backing track of the vocals, and that Beyoncé chose to use this version instead of perform live to close the inauguration ceremony. The spokeswoman said, "We did pre-record it and it was Beyoncé"s decision at the last minute to go with the pre-recorded version." "We pre-recorded all music as a matter of course and have done since time immemorial," she said. This is our 54th inauguration...There is no question of there not being any music - it's not because the performer cannot do it. Beyoncé's performance of Star Spangled Banner was performed on the Capitol in Washington DC, as part of a run of musical events to celebrate Obama's second inauguration. Kelly Clarkson sung My Country "Tis of Thee and James Taylor performed America the Beautiful.