Sia performs on The Ellen Show with her back to audience

By Mariam Digges

Sia performs on The Ellen Show with her back to audience
Why did Australian artist Sia perform on The Ellen Show with her back to the audience the entire time?

Australian artist Sia made a rare appearance on The Ellen Show recently to sing her new track Chandelier.

Only thing is, the singer remained in the corner of the stage with her back to the audience the entire time, while 11-year-old dancer Maddy Ziegler recreated her music video complete with a contemporary dance routine.

“When she performs, she chooses not to face the camera, but believe me, this is her singing live,” announced Ellen in her introduction of Sia’s performance ,accompanied by the faceless cover of the Aussie artist’s forthcoming album, 1000 Forms of Fear.

According to Sia, whose hits include Clap Your Hands and Breathe Me, the decision to shy away from the audience is in an effort to protect her mental health. The artist has never been secretive about her battle with painkiller addiction and alcoholism, disclosing all in an interview with Billboard last year (she covered the same issue with a paper bag over her head).

But is her attempt at fleeing the limelight thrusting her straight into it? Will it start a Bruce Wayne style obsession with unmasking the real Sia? Or is this a bold statement by an artist wanting to be judged by merits alone?

Daft Punk have successfully paved a masked empire, along with Canadian electro wiz Deadmau5. The issue here is that Sia, known to her folks as Sia Furler, launched her career as a fresh-faced indie-pop voice.

There’s no denying her talents as a songwriter, having penned tracks for pop music’s most lucrative darlings, including Beyonce, Britney Spears and Rihanna. She could most likely get by with that alone, and live happily as the faceless talent behind the chart’s biggest heavyweights. But something tells us that’s not enough for her.

Watch the video and tell us your thoughts below.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE

Print Recipe

BECOME A MiNDFOOD SUBSCRIBER TODAY

Let us keep you up to date with our weekly MiNDFOOD e-newsletters which include the weekly menu plan, health and news updates or tempt your taste buds with the MiNDFOOD Daily Recipe. 

Member Login