NEW YORK -- Was she or wasn't she -- lip-synching?

Video

Ashlee Simpson's Gaffe

Ashlee Simpson appeared on "Saturday Night Live" Saturday night, but apparently she wasn't "live" enough.

Simpson was on the NBC comedy show to perform two of her songs.

Something went wrong during her second number.

Her band started playing "Autobiography," but a recorded vocal track had Simpson singing "Pieces of Me," which she did earlier on the show.

Simpson looked confused as the band plowed ahead and the vocal was quickly silenced. Simpson then did some hoe-down style dance moves and walked off stage about a-half minute into the song. NBC quickly cut to a commercial.

Her record label insists Simpson wasn't lip-synching, saying the track was supposed to have been some pre-taped electronic percussion.

At the end of the show, guest host Jude Law appeared and tried to explain the pre-recorded song. "What can I say?" Law said with Simpson by his side. "Live TV."

"Exactly. I feel so bad. My band started playing the wrong song. I didn't know what to do so I thought I'd do a hoe-down," Simpson said.

Meanwhile, Simpson is being ridiculed in news reports following the disastrous appearance.

The Daily News in New York is calling her a "lip-syncing laughingstock" and a "karaoke coward."

USA Today reports that Web sites are lampooning Simpson in altered video and pictures, linking her to Milli Vanilli, the two performers who lost their 1990 Grammy for lip-synching.

The paper reports that Simpson's official Web site was swamped with unflattering remarks.

Simpson is set to appear at the Radio Music Awards in Las Vegas Monday night.