There was a deafening cheer as Lizzo launched into her hit Truth Hurts on the live performance at London’s O2 Arena in March.
It was crammed to the rafters, primarily with ladies and women waving glow-sticks within the air as they sang alongside to the tune, an ode to self-love and empowerment after a relationship ends.
For me and my two feminine mates, it was a joyous and uplifting expertise.
Mums and daughters danced and sang the evening away, many carrying T-shirts in tribute to the larger-than-life US star, a plus-sized singer who has carved herself a popularity as a feminist icon.
One fan wore a high that learn “Lizzo for President”; one other’s had the phrases of one in all her songs, “Feeling good as hell”, emblazoned throughout it.
Near me, a candy little woman accompanied by her father appeared transfixed by the rap star, who was carrying a flesh-baring, sequined all-in-one outfit.
It was an identical story at Glastonbury in June, when Lizzo arrived on the Pyramid stage earlier than one other sea of feminine followers, who gave an enormous cheer once they noticed the signal behind her with its life-affirming message: “These are songs about love. Self-love. Family love. Friend love.
“Love is what the world needs to be a better place. Take time to give love to yourself today. Treat yourself the way you deserve to be treated. Treat others the same.”
As she twerked and leapt round with bewildering power, the group went wild and she or he informed them later how “moved” she was by their help.
It was in 2016 that Lizzo first got here to public consideration in America, however Lizzomania has since grow to be a world phenomenon — and Britain just isn’t immune.
She is not only a bodily pressure to be reckoned with, who beams power and vitality from the stage, however her body-positive and uplifting mantra — “be the best of yourself” is now shared by tens of millions of ladies throughout the globe, who see her as a trailblazer.
Until now.
Because the Lizbians — her tongue-in-cheek identify for her rapturous supporters — are reeling from the revelation this week that three of her dancers (who have been shut mates) have filed a lawsuit at a Los Angeles courtroom in opposition to Lizzo, her manufacturing firm and her “dance captain” Shirlene Quigley for allegedly making a hostile work surroundings which included sexual harassment and fat-shaming.
Another dancer who just isn’t a part of the lawsuit has come out in help of the trio, as has Lizzo’s former inventive director, who claims she “walked away” from directing a documentary concerning the singer in 2019 after going through mistreatment from her.
If all this wasn’t unhealthy sufficient for the star — actual identify Melissa Viviane Jefferson — on Tuesday evening she appeared to have misplaced the help of her one-time pal, fellow feminist and idol, Beyonce.
The R’n’B celebrity neglected Lizzo’s identify from the lyrics of her tune Break My Soul. Beyonce, 41, has been singing the monitor on her Renaissance tour.
In it, she often lists the names of a number of boundary-breaking black feminine artists, together with Lizzo. But throughout her efficiency in Boston, Massachusetts, Lizzo’s identify was omitted.
If intentional, the omission can be a body-blow for the rap star.
Last yr, when she discovered that Beyonce was paying homage to her within the tune, she took to Twitter to say: “. . . Beyonce said my name,” earlier than posting a screenshot of the lyrics and including, “I’m reading and weeping . . . “
Just a few months earlier, Lizzo had taken to Instagram to wish Beyonce a happy 40th birthday, captioning a photograph of herself and the superstar with the message: “Happy birthday @beyonce — ima keep posting this pic until we take a real one together”.
The put up bought 1.2 million “likes” — proof that followers adored the 2 stars’ sisterhood pledge.
Of course, Lizzo could also be solely harmless of any wrongdoing.
The singer has not but responded publicly to the allegations, which have but to be examined in courtroom. But there is no such thing as a query that her followers can be shell-shocked by these new developments.
The authorized papers deposited in courtroom contained accusations from her dancers Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez of sexual, spiritual and racial harassment; discrimination; assault and false imprisonment.
In the paperwork there are additionally allegations that the dancers have been “forced to endure sexually denigrating behaviour” and “pressured into participating in disturbing sex shows” between 2021 and 2023.
Among the claims in opposition to Lizzo is that earlier this yr she organised an evening out for the dancers in a strip membership in Amsterdam.
Ms Davis claims “she felt pressured into touching the breasts” of a unadorned performer, with the star main chants of her identify till she did so.
After at first resisting, it’s claimed she finally acquiesced, “fearing it may harm her future on the team” if she didn’t.
The Detroit-born rapper can be accused, together with choreographer Tanisha Scott, of weight shaming Ms Davis on tour.
It is that this accusation that’s more likely to be probably the most damaging to Lizzo, whose model is claimed to be price AUD$77 million, for she performs on her plus-size picture.
Ms Davis alleges the 2 requested her whether or not she was “struggling with something, as she seemed less committed to her role on the dance cast”.
The declare provides: “In professional dance, a dancer’s weight gain is often seen as that dancer getting lazy or worse off as a performer. Lizzo’s and Ms Scott’s questions about Ms Davis’s commitment to the tour were thinly veiled concerns about Ms Davis’s weight gain.”
Though by no means explicitly said, the questions “gave Ms Davis the impression that she needed to explain her weight gain and disclose intimate personal details about her life in order to keep her job”.
Ms Davis and Ms Williams bought to know Lizzo and later tour together with her once they have been each contestants on Prime Video’s actuality sequence Lizzo’s Watch Out For The Big Grrrls, in 2021, by which the star was auditioning for brand spanking new backup dancers.
And on Wednesday, a clip from the sequence emerged on-line displaying Lizzo encouraging contestants to pose for a unadorned shoot.
On the clip, Ms Davis says she is “having a hard time with the nude photoshoot” and that she’s “a bit more modest”.
Then she provides: “I think that might hinder my chances of being a Big Grrrl. I think I can be naked emotionally and mentally without being naked physically.”
Ms Williams and Ms Davis bought the job however have been fired early this yr.
Ms Rodriguez — the third dancer who was employed in 2021 — additionally left this yr, however of her personal accord.
It has not gone unnoticed that Lizzo, too, threatened to offer all of it up this yr.
In May she wrote on Twitter: “I hate it here. Y’all don’t know how close I be to giving up on everyone and quitting and enjoying my money and my man on a F****** FARM.”
Whether this imbroglio will once more encourage her to consider quitting is open to query, though the claims in fact might show baseless.
Whatever the case, Lizzo has grow to be one of many least probably pop stars of the previous few years.
She was born in Michigan to a businessman father, Michael Jefferson, and entrepreneur mum, Shari Johnson-Jefferson.
Aged eight, she was classically educated as a flautist and after the household moved to Texas, started rapping as a youngster.
When she was 14, she based her first band, Cornrow Clique, and was given the nickname Lizzo.
She later studied classical music on the University of Houston however dropped out in 2009 following the loss of life of her father when she was 21.
She claims to have been broke and residing in her automotive as she tried to interrupt into the music business.
But she managed to launch her first album, Lizzobangers, in 2013 and her profession took off three years later. In distinction to many slender pop stars, she has intentionally made her identify from her curves, which she flaunts.
She grew to become a family identify following the success of her third studio album, Cuz I Love You, launched in 2019.
In 2020, she gained her first Grammy awards for greatest city up to date album and greatest conventional R&B efficiency, together with her hit Jerome.
Earlier this yr she gained her third Grammy.
Music consultants put a lot of her success all the way down to her overtly feminist lyrics.
She struck a selected chord through the pandemic together with her single About Damn Time, from her fourth studio album, Special, which she wrote to assist her really feel higher about herself.
Speaking of the hit, she mentioned: “I think life had thrown some major traumas and hard experiences at us, especially globally these last few years.
“I wanted to write a song that allowed us to take a moment and celebrate our survival and celebrate how far we’ve come. And I think About Damn Time does just that. It does it for me, honey.”
Cashing in on her standing, she will be able to now add dressmaker to her CV, after launching her personal clothes model known as Yitty, which she describes as “inclusive shapewear”.
The vary, a collaboration with exercise br and Fabletics , contains attire, loungewear and underwear, all priced between AUD$77 and $194.
While the critiques have been combined, sources near the star say gross sales have been “better than expected”.
Fans have been divided of their views on the scandal on Wednesday.
With some claiming that Lizzo had been focused as a result of she is black.
One wrote on Twitter: “Y’all don’t really care about what those dancers went through, y’all just needed a reason to call Lizzo a fat b***h and y’all got it.”
Some followers dashed to social media to share their help for Ms Davis, Ms Williams and Ms Rodriguez.
One mentioned: “Lots of people crawling out the woodwork to use a horrible situation as an excuse to be fat phobic and racist, which is really not what this is about. Solidarity to the dancers and I hope they find both justice and peace.”
Many, nonetheless, are ready to see what Lizzo has to say concerning the accusations.
Her Hollywood-based brokers didn’t reply to requests for remark. But one music publicist informed the Daily Mail: “After all the bleating she has done about body image and what a force she is, she really needs to come out and address these claims before it’s too late”.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
