Lizzo had a message for her 12.2 million Instagram followers on Friday (March 29). In an emotionally-charged post, the “Truth Hurts” singer suggested she was going to walk away from her career due to the public’s constant scrutiny.
“I’m getting tired of putting up with being dragged by everyone in my life and on the internet,” she wrote. “All I want is to make music and make people happy and help the world be a little better than how I found it. But I’m starting to feel like the world doesn’t want me in it. I’m constantly up against lies being told about me for clout & views… being the butt of the joke every single time because of how I look… my character being picked apart by people who don’t know me and disrespecting my name. I didn’t sign up for this s— — I QUIT [peace out emoji].”
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Lizzo is currently facing several legal issues. Last month, her request to toss out a lawsuit filed by three of her former dancers was denied, indicating the suit will proceed. Judge Mark H. Epstein ruled in a 34-page decision in Los Angeles County Superior Court that Lizzo’s argument that the case be dismissed under the anti-SLAPP statute didn’t entirely fit the suit. The anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) statute allows defendants to quickly dismiss meritless suits that threaten their right to free speech under the First Amendment. However, Epstein did elect to throw out some of the plaintiffs’ accusations against Lizzo and her team, including that Lizzo fat-shamed one of her dancers.
The original lawsuit, filed by Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez in August, alleged Lizzo created a hostile work environment and sexually harassed her employees. It also named dance captain Shirlene Quigley and Lizzo’s production company, Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc., as defendants.
Lizzo has been vulnerable on social media numerous times over the years. In 2021, the Grammy Award-winning artist debuted the video for “Rumors” featuring Cardi B and was faced with a flood of negative comments targeting her weight. As a result, Lizzo headed to Instagram Live and confessed sometimes the hate penetrates her usual coat of armor. Sitting in her bathroom with tears streaming down her face, Lizzo talked about how all the negativity was affecting her.
“On the days I feel I should be the happiest, I feel so down,” she said. “Like, I hurt so hard. I’ve been working triple time, quadruple time, doing like 12 hours a day of promos and interviews, doing interviews, going to the studio with a f###ing root canal…rehearsal, then filming every single day, shooting a documentary and I’m still writing music.”
She continued, “Sometimes I feel like the world just don’t love me back. It’s like it doesn’t matter how much positive energy you put into the world, you’re still going to have people who have something mean to say about you. And for the most part it doesn’t hurt my feelings; I don’t care. I just think when I’m working this hard, my tolerance gets lower. My patience is lower. I’m more sensitive and it gets to me … People saying s### about me that just doesn’t even make sense. It’s fat-phobic, and it’s racist and it’s hurtful. If you don’t like my music, cool. If you don’t like ‘Rumors’ the song, cool. But a lot of people don’t like me because of the way I look.”