Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Viewers Call out Jimmy Fallon’s Lip Syncing

The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon and The Roots were among the celebrities to perform at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade on Thursday morning in New York City. Most of the acts lip sync during the parade, since it is far too cold for many to sing live. However, Fallon’s performance of “Surfin’ Bird,” was particularly picked apart by social media users.

One Twitter user called it “the worst lip sync I’ve ever seen.” That user was not alone. Another gave him a “0/10” rating, pointing out that Fallon famously created the Lip Sync Battle skits seen on The Tonight Show.

Another Twitter user actually liked Fallon’s zany performance. After all, it was a festive occasion and there was no reason to be serious about it.

Fallon and The Roots, his Tonight Show house band, performed atop the Entenmannn’s float. It was designed to look just like a bake shop, and required over 15 gallons of paint and more than 100 hours of painting to pull off the intricate look. The group and the comedian were joined by dancers dressed as pastry chefs with cupcake hats. They all carried giant rolling pins as dance props.

“The Bird is The Word” was first recorded by The Rivingtons in 1963 as the follow-up to “Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow.” Later that same year, The Trashmen released “Surfin’ Bird,” a combination of the two songs, which became a No. 4 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

Other artists who performed during this year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade included the Black Eyed Peas, Celine Dion, Ciara, Chicago, Idina Menzel, Lea Michele, the casts of Beetlejuice and Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations, and the casts of Sesame Street and The Muppets.

Photo credit: Nancy Rivera/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images/Getty Images