Lizzo lawsuit – latest: Ex-dancers’ lawyer hits back at singer’s response to sexual harassment claims
Plaintiff Arianna Davis alleges the Grammy winner made a ‘thinly-veiled’ comment about her weight and pressured her to touch nude performers at a strip club
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Your support makes all the difference.Lizzo has said “I’m not the villain” in response to sexual harassment and fat-shaming claims in a lawsuit filed by three former troupe members.
“These last few days have been gut wrenchingly difficult and overwhelmingly disappointing. My work ethic, morals and respectfulness have been questioned. My character has been criticized,” she wrote in a statement posted on her social media channels.
Shortly after the singer broke her silence, the accusers reacted in shock to Lizzo’s “disheartening” response to their claims during their first UK TV appearance since their allegations came to light on Tuesday (1 August).
“Initially for me it just further deepened my disappointment in regards to how I was feeling and how I was treated,” Crystal Williams said on Channel 4.
According to the legal filing, Lizzo (real name Melissa Viviane Jefferson) allegedly pressured one of her dancers, Arianna Davis into touching a nude performer at an Amsterdam strip club.
It is also alleged that the Grammy winner set up a humiliating 12-hour re-audition for her dancers, and fostered a hostile work environment.
Lizzo breaks silence and says dancers’ lawsuit claims are ‘false’
From sexual harassment to assault, all the allegations against Lizzo by former dancers
Dancer suing Lizzo suggested in 2021 she felt pressured to pose nude for singer’s Big Grrrls reality show
Lizzo’s former dancers react to singer’s ‘disheartening’ denial against allegations
Lizzo talks about wanting to go to banana sex show in resurfaced video
A video of Lizzo talking about wanting to go to a sex show in Amsterdam has resurfaced in the wake of the lawsuit filed against the singer.
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Lizzo talks about wanting to go to banana sex show in resurfaced video
Singer is seen laughing and miming eating a banana in 2019 interview
Comment: The allegations against Lizzo have left fans like me shaken
Lizzo has made her name as a champion of self-love. But the lawsuit against the ‘Truth Hurts’ singer – accusing her of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment – has devastated devotees like Nicole Vassell, precisely because of the empowering brand burnished by the star.
The allegations against Lizzo have left fans like me shaken
Lizzo has made her name as a champion of self-love. But the lawsuit against the ‘Truth Hurts’ singer – accusing her of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment – has devastated devotees like Nicole Vassell, precisely because of the empowering brand burnished by the star
What are the allegations against Lizzo?
Three of Lizzo’s former dancers have levelled accusations of sexual harassment and workplace misconduct against Lizzo, her production company, and dance captain Shirlene Quigley in a new lawsuit.
The plaintiffs include Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams, and Noelle Rodriguez, who filed the paperwork at the Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday 1 August.
Claims against the singer include that she invited her employees “to take turns touching nude performers, catching dildos launched from the performers’ vaginas, and eating bananas protruding from the performers’ vaginas” at a strip club in Amsterdam.
She is also accused of fat-shaming Davis, who was fired after Lizzo discovered her recording one of their meetings due to a health condition. “Ms Quigley and Lizzo then took turns berating Ms Davis,” the paperwork reportedly read. “After castigating Ms Davis, Lizzo fired Ms Davis on the spot.”
Quigley also allegedly “made comments deriding people who engaged in pre-marital sex, knowing that some members of the dance cast did not share her views”.
Watch: Accusers describe Lizzo’s ‘fat-shaming’ as they break silence in first interview
Lizzo’s past lyrics raise eyebrows after singer’s sued by former dancers
Lyrics from a famous Lizzo song are raising eyebrows in the wake of the lawsuit filed against the singer.
The singer is being sued by her former dancers for alleged sexual harassment and for allegedly establishing a hostile work environment, with the lawsuit claiming that Lizzo “hounded” one of the plaintiffs into touching a nude performer at an Amsterdam strip club.
Since the lawsuit was reported, lyrics from Lizzo’s Cardi B collaboration “Rumors”, released in 2021, are circulating social media.
The lyrics read: “Had to cut some hoes loose, yeah / NDA, no loose lips / Now them hoes tryna sue me / B****, I don’t give two s***s / All the rumors are true, yeah.”
Read more here:
Lizzo’s past lyrics raise eyebrows after singer is sued by former dancers
Singer’s 2021 track sounds different in the wake of allegations made against her
Beyoncé’s mother addresses speculation singer changed song lyrics after Lizzo lawsuit
Beyoncé‘s mother has addressed speculation the singer left out Lizzo’s name from a song during a show on her Renaissance tour after news of the lawsuit broke.
The same night that the allegations were made public, Beyoncé was performing in Boston, Massachusetts. During the show, she changed the lyrics of “Break My Heart (The Queens Remix)”, in which she lists the names of female Black artists, including Lizzo, Erykah Badu, Betty Davis, and her sister Solange Knowles.
While singing the song on Tuesday, fans noted, she didn’t do the usual shoutouts – choosing to repeat “Badu” four times instead. Some speculated the omission was connected to the accusations against Lizzo.
Shortly after, Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Lawson, addressed this fan theory on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
Read more:
Beyoncé’s mother addresses speculation singer changed song lyrics after Lizzo lawsuit
Beyoncé didn’t say Lizzo’s name during her performance of ‘Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)’ on Tuesday
Did Beyoncé change lyrics on her tour to omit singer’s name amid sexual harassment claims?
Beyoncé fans have speculated that she left Lizzo’s name out of a live performance due to recent allegations made against the singer.
The pop star, 41, regularly performs “Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)” as part of her set for the ongoing worldwide Renaissance tour.
There is a segment in the song’s lyrics in which Beyoncé lists off a number of Black female artists, including Lizzo, Lauryn Hill, Betty Davis, and her sister Solange Knowles.
During her performance in Boston, Massachusetts on Tuesday night (1 August), the singer altered the lyrics, appearing to leave out Lizzo’s name on purpose.
Read here:
Beyoncé seemingly removes Lizzo shout-out from song during concert
Some fans believe the altered lyrics were a reference to recent criticism from Erykah Badu
Watch: Lizzo's defiant Instagram post just hours before lawsuit filed
Dancer suing Lizzo suggested in 2021 she felt pressured to pose nude for singer’s Big Grrrls reality show
Resurfaced clip appears to show dancer feeling pressured to strip for Lizzo series
Arianna Davis was worried refusing to strip might ‘hinder chances‘ of being hired by singer
Lizzo, the poster girl for body positivity, whose empowering image is now under threat
The “Good as Hell” singer has crafted a globally successful brand of body positivity and self-love, backed up by a litany of empowerment anthems. But as the star faces shocking allegations in a new lawsuit, my colleague Kate Ng digs into how she got here.
Read more:
Lizzo was a beacon of body positivity. Now her empowering image is under threat
The ‘Good as Hell’ singer has crafted a globally successful brand of body positivity and self-love, backed up by a litany of empowerment anthems. But as the star faces shocking allegations in a new lawsuit, Kate Ng digs into how she got here