To understand the scope of the controversy, you have to know the character. In the music industry, Lizzo was seen as a breath of fresh air. A fat, black woman who refuses to apologize for being who she is? On the contrary, she claims it! “Lizzo represents something exceptional,” says Edith Bernier, popularizer, author and speaker on the prevention of fatphobia. In 2016, she made herself known to the general public with the release of Good as Hell, a catchy song carrying a message of self-acceptance and tolerance that would color the rest of her discography. On stage, she surrounds herself with dancers of all sizes and origins. She dares necklines and leotards, reveals her thighs and rolls. Until then, the fat women who existed in the media space dressed rather modestly, notes Ms. Bernier, taking the example of Adele. To women like her, Lizzo sends a powerful message. “It’s possible to be successful,” she says.
The whole point is there. Several fans experienced it as a betrayal. Their model accused of everything she always denounced? It’s impossible ! However, three ex-dancers of the singer filed a complaint on Tuesday for sexual, religious and racial harassment. According to the complainants, the interpreter of Truth Hurts would have highlighted the weight gain of a dancer and pressured his employees to touch naked dancers in an Amsterdam cabaret. On Thursday, Lizzo responded to the allegations, denying everything. “I usually choose not to respond to false allegations, but these are as unbelievable as they sound and too outrageous not to respond to,” she retorted. Sometimes I have to make tough decisions, but it’s never my intention to make someone feel uncomfortable or feel unvalued as an important part of the team. Later Thursday, the plaintiffs gave an interview to CNN, reacting to the singer’s denial. “I want to say that just makes me more disappointed with the situation, because the facts are the facts,” Crystal Williams told host Phil Mattingly. What we have experienced and what we have witnessed is reality. There is nothing sensationalist about it. All I can hope for is that people focus more on facts than on public opinion. »
Very bad. Anger, disappointment, misunderstanding: the full range of emotions were represented in the comments under the artist’s posts. Grosphobic remarks too. Would the reaction have been so fierce if Lizzo wasn’t a fat black woman? “When someone so atypical is successful, there are always haters, people waiting in the shadows to cast the first stone whenever there is an opportunity. It has to be perfect, because it’s not perfect,” observes Edith Bernier. But communications strategist Martine St-Victor believes the opposite. Part of the public prefers to wait for more information before definitively putting a cross on the singer, she recalls. And the deep love that his fans have for him may play in his favor.
For now, the damage seems rather limited to social networks. No business partner severed ties with her, no radio station pulled her songs. “She is doing moderately well, given the content of the allegations,” judge Martine St-Victor. Still, Beyoncé allegedly omitted Lizzo’s name during the song Break My Soul (Queen’s Remix), which praises prominent women in the entertainment industry, at a concert in Boston earlier this week. . If the plaintiffs won their case, Lizzo would not be the only loser in this story. Her fans would also lose a model that looks like them, a positive voice in the public space, laments Edith Bernier. “As a fat woman, you constantly have to find new role models, because they’ve lost weight, because they’re tired of being in the limelight, because they’re not there for one reason or another,” she suggests. One thing is certain, she adds, it is too early to comment on the allegations. “You have to take victims seriously, but I also think you shouldn’t jump to conclusions. We must trust the authorities in place to carry out the investigation, ”she concludes.
Three former dancers filed a civil lawsuit in Los Angeles on Tuesday against Lizzo for sexual, religious and racial harassment, disability discrimination, assault and forcible confinement.
Filmmaker Sophia Nahli Allison reported on social media on Wednesday that she was working on a documentary about the artist’s life, but quit the project after “witnessing his arrogance, self-centeredness and lack of kindness”.
Lizzo won the Grammy Awards for Best Recording of the Year last February for her song About Damn Time.
With less than two hours notice, she postponed her May 4 show at the Bell Center due to health issues. She finally hit the Montreal stage on June 11.
