Lizzo’s future is hanging within the stability – will she survive?

Body positivity is Lizzo’s model.

No stranger to the topic of fats shaming, the singer – whose actual identify is actual identify Melissa Viviane Jefferson – has been credited with changing the narrative around plus-size women, calling out sizeist behaviour and refusing to adapt to business stereotypes as she cranks out the hits in a rainbow array of skin-tight leotards and bodysuits.

She’s received 4 Grammys, and in 2019 was named Time’s entertainer of the 12 months. Her 2023 Glastonbury set on the competition’s most important stage was met with vital acclaim. And she’s been credited with single-handedly elevating the profile of woodwind, making it formally cool to play the flute.

But now, with claims she is guilty of weight shaming and sexual harassment – accusations the 35-year-old singer, songwriter, rapper and flautist strongly denies – her future is hanging within the stability.

Three of Lizzo’s former dancers have filed a civil lawsuit in opposition to her and her manufacturing firm Big Grrrl Big Touring Inc (BGBT) – together with accusations she pressured one to the touch a nude performer at an Amsterdam strip membership, and made feedback about one performer placing on weight earlier than firing her.

Two of the dancers had received their roles on Lizzo’s Emmy-winning actuality present Watch Out For The Big Grrrls, which provides plus-sized dancers the prospect to compete to be a part of her workforce.

Two days after the lawsuit was publicly introduced, Lizzo posted an announcement on Instagram, calling the allegations in opposition to her false – and labelling them “unbelievable,” “outrageous,” and “sensationalised”.

She mentioned she was enthusiastic about her artwork, and that “with passion comes hard work and high standards,” including “sometimes I have to make hard decisions”.

In flip, Lizzo accused “people and the media” of portraying her as a “villain”.

She then touched on the very motive there’s been such a showbiz stir over the claims, telling her followers: “I know what it feels like to be body shamed on a daily basis and would absolutely never criticise or terminate an employee because of their weight.”

For a very long time within the shiny and glamourous world of showbiz, thinness and fame have been so firmly intertwined as to be just about inseparable. Lizzo exploded that delusion – bursting onto the scene and refusing to be informed she wanted to be a measurement zero in an effort to make it.

The accusations in opposition to her should sting notably onerous as a result of reality she’s beforehand spoken so brazenly about her struggles with physique points from an early age and experiencing physique shaming herself as a result of her weight.

Advocating physique confidence, and a job mannequin to many, she gave a protracted overdue increase to the visibility of plus-sized ladies in leisure.

But when Beyonce skipped a reference to Lizzo in a reside efficiency of Break My Soul (The Queens Remix) on Tuesday night time, many noticed it as an early snub, signalling the star’s potential cancellation.

And Lizzo’s product is extra than simply herself or her music – there’s additionally the bandwagon of merchandise that comes with any bona fide US star. You can purchase Lizzo T-shirts, trackies and hoodies – and even a Lizzo thong with Juice (the title of her 2019 hit) plastered throughout the entrance.

It appears probably that gross sales of the merch might now gradual – no less than till the lawsuit is concluded – as followers attempt to work out if hers is a label they need to be related to.

Further accusations in opposition to Lizzo have adopted news of the lawsuit, with Oscar-nominated filmmaker Sophia Nahli Allison posting statements on social media, supporting the claims of the three backing dancers, and calling Lizzo “arrogant, self-centred, and unkind”.

Nahli Allison had been as a result of direct a documentary concerning the star, travelling together with her in 2019, however mentioned she dropped out of the challenge after two weeks after being handled with “such disrespect by her”.

She accused Lizzo of making “an extremely toxic and hostile working environment” – calling her “a narcissistic bully,” claiming the singer has “built her brand off lies”, and saying “her image and ‘message’ was a curated facade”.

Following Lizzo’s response to the accusations, the legislation agency representing the three former dancers says the singer has “failed her own brand and let down her fans” – including that her phrases had been an try and “minimise the trauma” she’s alleged to have brought on. They additionally say extra folks have been in contact with them because the ladies got here ahead.

It’s not the primary time Lizzo – who as a songwriter makes her residing from phrases – has been within the firing line over perceived insensitivity to others.

Last 12 months, a lyric from her song Grrrls generated controversy after utilizing a derogatory time period for the situation spastic cerebral palsy.

The lyric was finally modified, with Lizzo saying on the time: “As a fat black woman in America, I’ve had many hurtful words used against me so I understand the power words can have (whether intentionally or in my case, unintentionally).”

The singer now finds herself on the defensive once more – with many who beforehand felt empowered and emboldened by her physique constructive messages now more likely to be questioning the worth of phrases and actions some declare are counterfeit and empty.

With her actuality present commissioned for a second season, there’ll now even be eyes on the response of Amazon Studios (who produce the present together with the singer’s manufacturing firm Lizzo Bangers). They have beforehand hailed the singer as “one of the most exciting, creative, joyful artists in the industry”.

When launching auditions in April, Lizzo herself mentioned: “I’ve witnessed lives change through this show and I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue making space for even more Big Grrrls around the world to shine and break down barriers across this industry.”

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Known for main chants of “I love you, you are beautiful and you can do anything” throughout her gigs, the authenticity wanted to make these type of affirmations really feel inspiring slightly than icky is now below scrutiny.

Lizzo now dangers seeing her triple-charged model – with all the color, vibrancy and pizzazz related together with her work – flip from constructive to adverse within the blink of an eye fixed.

She performs a superhero in her newest shiny music video, however in actuality, Lizzo’s superpower – her all-embracing physique positivity – may transform her kryptonite if it is proved she did not reside by the requirements she set for others. The forthcoming lawsuit will determine if she’s forged because the hero or “villain” of that story.

Sky News has contacted Lizzo for remark.