Lizzo has addressed the sexual harassment lawsuit filed against her by three former dancers for the first time. During an interview with Keke Palmer on her podcast, the Grammy-winning singer expressed shock and disappointment over the allegations.
In her first in-depth interview since the lawsuit was filed, Lizzo, 36, reflected on the emotional toll the allegations have taken on her. “2023 was an amazing year for me,” she began. “It was a career-high… and then the tour ended, and three ex-dancers just completely, like, blindsided me with a lawsuit.”
The lawsuit, filed in August 2023, accuses Lizzo and her company, Big Grrrl Big Touring, of fostering a toxic work environment. The claims include allegations of sexual harassment, racial discrimination, and even weight-shaming, an accusation that stings particularly hard for Lizzo, who has built her career on promoting body positivity and inclusivity.
According to the complaint, the dancers were allegedly pressured to engage with nude performers and partake in inappropriate activities at a nightclub during a tour stop in Amsterdam. The plaintiffs also allege they endured demeaning comments about their weight and experienced racially insensitive remarks.
Lizzo’s conversation with Palmer comes almost a week after some of the allegations were thrown out by a judge due to insufficient evidence.
“People who have been following me for a long time know that when I started as an indie artist, I was hiring my friends, and that’s how it is in this industry,” Lizzo explained at 10:10 in the video linked above. “You hire your friends, and if they’re not your friends when you hire them, they become your friends.”
She continued, “That boss-employee dynamic in the music industry isn’t as intense as it is in the corporate world. I literally toured with people that I considered my best friends and sisters for years, and I hear about artists who don’t even talk to their dancers and who don’t mingle with them at all.
“I used to be like, ‘Why it’s like that? It don’t gotta be like that. We can all be family and hang out and have a good time.’ But now I see why. And I think this experience taught me how to set those kinds of boundaries, not just to protect them, but to protect myself.”
