Jessica Simpson Struggles With Voice Problems to Perform  9/3/06

Jessica Simpson struggled with voice problems to perform on US breakfast show Today this morning (01SEP06) after spending much of the week croaking through TV interviews.

The pop star burst a blood vessel in her vocal cord at the beginning of the week (28AUG06) and was forced to pull the plug on a number of TV performances to promote her new album A Public Affair.

She struggled through one interview on MTV's Total Request Live on Tuesday (29AUG06) and appeared much better when she presented the Best Dance Video at last night's (31AUG06) MTV Video Music Awards.

But she barely made it through a two-song set on the outdoor Rockefeller Plaza stage this morning, asking thousands of fans, who had gathered for the free concert, "Are you guys gonna help me out with this one because my voice is shot?"

She then struggled to hit the high notes on 2005 hit With You, joking, "Alright, I tried that one."

Simpson supped a secret potion in between songs, but confessed she had no idea what was in the medication.

She said, "That is some concoction. My vocal coach, Ron Anderson, makes this nasty (stuff)."