Lizzo is finally opening up after she was hit with a lawsuit accusing her of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment for workers on her team.
In a statement she posted on her verified social media, the award-winning singer said “these last few days have been gut wrenchingly difficult and overwhelmingly disappointing,” her statement reads. “My work ethic, morals and respectfulness have been questioned. Usually I choose not to respond to false allegations but these are as unbelievable as they sound and too outrageous to not be addressed.”
She continued: “These sensationalized stories are coming from former employees who have already publicly admitted that they were told their behavior on tour was inappropriate and unprofessional.”
“As an artist, I have always been very passionate about what I do. I take my music and my performances seriously because at the end of the day,” she wrote. “I only want to put out the best art that represents me and my fans. With passion comes hard, work and high standards.”
“Sometimes I have to make hard decisions but it’s never my intention to make anyone feel uncomfortable, or like they aren’t valued as an important part of the team,” she wrote, adding she is “not here to be looked at as a victim, but I also know that I am not the villain that people in the media have portrayed me to be these last few days.”
“There is nothing I take more seriously than the respect we deserve as women in the world. I know what it feels like to be body shamed on a daily basis, and would absolutely never criticize or terminate an employee because of their weight,” Lizzo continued. “I am hurt, but I will not let the good work I’ve done in the world be overshadowed by this. I want to thank everyone who has reached out and support to lift me up during this difficult time.”
Background
Lizzo is facing sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment accusations after three of her former dancers filed a lawsuit against the Truth Hurts star.
In the suit filed Tuesday, the dancers allege that the 35-year-old Detroit native pressured one of them to touch a nude performer in Amsterdam and subjected dancers to an “excruciating” audition after she accused them of drinking on the job.
Lizzo has long been known to promote body positivity but has been accused of berating a dancer because of her weight gain. The suit claims that the dancer was later fired because of a health condition.
The suit, obtained by NBC News, was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court. It alleges Lizzo’s dance team captain, Shirlene Quigley, also engaged in inappropriate actions, including cajoling other performers, ridiculing those who had premarital sex, sharing lewd sexual fantasies, simulating oral sex and publicly speaking about the virginity of one of the dancers.
The suit’s plaintiffs – Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez – represented by attorney Ron Zambrano, names Melissa Viviane Jefferson (Lizzo’s legal name), her production company, Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc., and Quigley as defendants.
The suit accuses Lizzo and her team of religious and racial harassment, false imprisonment and interference with prospective economic advantage, among and other allegations.
“The stunning nature of how Lizzo and her management team treated their performers seems to go against everything Lizzo stands for publicly, while privately she weight-shames her dancers and demeans them in ways that are not only illegal but absolutely demoralizing,” Zambrano said in a statement.
The suit does not indicate the amount the plaintiffs are seeking in damages but does state that the damages would cover emotional distress, unpaid wages, loss of earnings and attorney’s fees.
Meanwhile, Lizzo was recently seen in a social media clip telling a fan in Australia how beautiful she was and could “be the greatest dancer in the world.”
“The words that we say have a long-lasting effect on people,” Lizzo told the fan who said she has been the subject of bullying.
The three former dancers, Crystal Williams, Arianna Davis, and Noelle Rodriguez, appeared on “CNN This Morning” Thursday with their attorney and responded to Lizzo’s statement.
“I want to say that reading [Lizzo’s statement] just kind of further my furthered my like disappointment in regards to the situation, just because the facts are the facts, what we experienced and what we witnessed is absolutely what happened,” Williams said. “There’s nothing sensationalized about it. So all that I can hope is that people focus more so on the facts rather than the court of public opinion.”
Davis agreed.
“Personally, looking at the response from Lizzo was so disheartening because she was there,” Davis said. “She was there and to fix your hand, to write on a piece of paper that you discredit everything we’re saying is incredibly frustrating.”
