will.i.am refuses to stop Tweeting during live episodes of The Voice U.K.
by Aaron Zorgel
May 9, 2012
will.i.am’s BBC bosses are furious at the Black Eyed Pea for “disrespecting” the audience by texting and Tweeting during live broadcasts of the U.K. version of The Voice. After receiving one warning for using his mobile phone during the broadcast, will.i.am actively sent the BBC producers a message by using his phone no fewer than 16 times during an episode last week.
will.i.am’s BBC bosses are furious at the Black Eyed Pea for “disrespecting” the audience by texting and Tweeting during live broadcasts of the U.K. version of The Voice.
will.iam is one of four coaches on the singing competition, along with Jessie J, Sir Tom Jones, and the guy from The Script. After receiving one warning for using his mobile phone during the broadcast, will.i.am actively sent the BBC producers a message by using his phone repeatedly during the show, even Tweeting pictures. According to The Mirror, will.i.am pulled out his Blackberry no fewer than 16 times while on camera on an episode last week.
Tweets like this started popping up on will.i.am’s timeline during the show last week:
After news of the BBC’s fury with will.i.am started to surface after the show, how appropriate was it that will.i.am responded on Twitter?
Is this really the way things are going? Right now it’s normal to have your friend stare at their phone during a face-to-face conversation, but will TV game show hosts like Alex Trebek and Pat Sajak be thumbing through their mobile phones, sexting Vanna White, or whatever, as contestants try to buy vowels?
Apparently will.i.am’s presence has also been problematic for the show, because he’s flying back and forth from his home in the United States. This has limited his coaching time with his team of contestants, and the other coaches had their time cut as well, for the sake of fairness.
I would say that everyone at the BBC should lighten up a bit, and turn will.i.am’s behaviour into a drinking game (every time he touches his phone, you drink), but apparently that’s already happening:
Does this remind anyone of the time that will.i.am forgot and read his own lyrics off of his phone while performing on live TV in France?
Between this, the excessive Tweeting, and the auto-tune, it’s pretty much official — will.i.am wants to be a cyborg.
