The Inside Scoop Of Milli Vanilli Lip Syncing Scandal A Deep Dive Into Their Career

With platforms like social media and technology such as camera phones, it’s hard to imagine a time when catfishing (when a person takes information and images, typically from other people, and uses them to create a new identity for themselves) wasn't possible.

However, on July 21, 1989, the world discovered that former dancers and Grammy winners Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus, better known as Milli Vanilli, were catfishing their entire careers.

In front of an 80,000 crowd in Bristol, Conn., the duo were caught like deers in headlights while their record started skipping during their chorus.

That is because instead of having real vocals to fall back on, Fab and Rob were caught lip-syncing, and were so embarrassed that they ran off stage.

Initially, fans fell in love with the pair's striking looks, exciting dance moves, and the catchy chorus of their hit song “Girl You Know It’s True." The hit was on the Billboard 100 for nearly half a year, peaking at No.2, leading to popularity and opportunity.

This concert was broadcast on MTV and in a matter of a few seconds a technical difficulty led to the downfall of their careers.

"Rob explained: "I wanted to die,” Pilatus told MTV, per Biography. “I couldn’t repeat it 15 times, so I stopped, I panicked, I went off stage.”

Fab and Rob managed to still finish their set — but became the butt of jokes in no time.

Milli Vanilli was deemed as an uncredible and fraudulent act. Fab and Rob were convinced that if they just had a chance to showcase their vocal talent, they could win back the hearts of the general public.

Even after the scandal, they managed to snag awards at the AMAs and Grammys in 1990.

However, despite their best efforts, they were never able to recover from the hit their career took from being exposed. For the first and only time, The Grammy’s revoked their new Best New Artist awards.

Fab explained the effects of the humiliation that he faced on Oprah Winfrey’s Where Are They Now?

“To lose everything so publicly was harsh,” Fab said in 2013. “You don’t know where to turn to because there’s nobody around you, you’re left alone. We were famous and now we’re infamous just like that.”

Fab was able to find his footing in EDM music, find love, and start a family but Fab was not as resilient. The challenges of being defamed fueling an ongoing battle with alcohol and drug addiction.

The disease of addiction eventually took his life on April 2, 1998.

The real vocalists behind Milli Vanilli, Brad Howell, and John Davis, were eventually given their due credit publicly. “Girl You Know It’s True” was not the duo’s only hit.

"Baby Don’t Forget My Number, "Blame It On the Rain," and “Girl I’m Gonna Miss You" all reached No. 1, while "All or Nothing." peaked at No. 4.

All of their songs were lipsynced.