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As Paris Hilton spoke at Capitol Hill about her experience in youth treatment facilities, one moment captured her wild vocal switch-up. The media personality, 43, appeared in front of a US House of Representatives committee earlier this week to advocate for child welfare reform and be ‘the voice for children whose voices can’t be heard.’ She recounted memories of the ‘harm’ she faced in youth residential treatment facilities such as Provo Canyon School – an intensive, psychiatric residential treatment center that she was forced to attend at age 16.
During her wider speech, keen-eared fans noticed her voice dramatically changing from a high to a low octave. At the start of the video – captured on a C-Span livestream – the Simple Life star appears to be talking to an official and tells them that she ‘loves their jacket’ and ‘the sparkles are amazing’. When the person responded that they brought ‘a little bling’, Paris added: ‘I wanted to find out who made it later,’ with a large grin on her face. The star has become synonymous with her ditzy persona.
The entire conversation was delivered in her familiar higher-pitched, slightly giggly, cadence. But it suddenly lowers as she turns to the matter at hand. ‘But I think the most important thing is, we need access to therapy, counselling, mentorship and other community programmes,’ she continued in her lower tone.
Fans shared their surprise at the obvious change on social media, noting how her persona changes alongside it. ‘From sexy baby with affinity for sparkly fashion to child welfare advocate getting down to brass tacks within seconds,’ @ctine__ wrote on X. ‘THIS CAUGHT ME SO OFF GUARD???? I feel like my life is a lie,’ @MissAmerikatie added. ‘This made me respect her so much more. We all have a “time to get down to business” voice,’ @my_tv_life reflected.
The voice change is insane
I love this clip, and also people should know the second voice is just as much an act as the first one–it’s just the act everyone else does in that same room
She was complimenting her as the character “Paris Hilton” and then switched off the character to get down to business as who she IS. I love the work she’s doing.
Mama been playing the game for decades. She knows how to switch on and off when she needs
Seeing this doing the rounds I legit had no idea this was a character. I cannot believe her dedication to the bit
The businesswoman has previously opened up about the evolution of her voice, and how it plays into her Paris Hilton image. She appeared on This Morning last year where presenter Alison Hammond questioned why her voice sounded lower and softer, contrary to how the world knows her. ‘This is my real voice, that was a character,’ the American heiress explained. ‘I am not a dumb blonde, people I am just good at playing it. After [The Simple Life] I got stuck in playing that role.’
She also spoke about it in her 2020 documentary This Is Paris. She has opened up about her code-switching before
In an interview with Vogue at the time, she said: ‘When people said things that hurt my feelings, in my mind I’d say, “Paris, that’s you playing a character, that isn’t you. Don’t feel bad when people are saying things because people aren’t talking about you, they’re talking about what they think you are.” ‘That mindset protected me because I’d already been so exposed and the whole world already had all these preconceived notions about me. I’m not a dumb blonde. I’m just really good at pretending to be one.’
Paris is not the first woman in the media to be scrutinised for her vocal code-switching. Earlier this month, singer Ariana Grande was questioned about her voice going high and low during a podcast interview. She told confused fans it was out of ‘habit’ and to protect her ‘vocal health’.
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