All products featured on Vogue are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links.
It’s been a disappointing week for Lizzo fans: On Tuesday, a civil lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court by three of her former dancers, alleging that she had engaged in sexual harassment and created a hostile work environment. The news comes as a particular shock to those who had long celebrated the 35-year-old singer for her commitment to body positivity. Below, get all the details on the situation.
What, specifically, is Lizzo being accused of?
Three of Lizzo’s former dancers—Crystal Williams, Arianna Davis, and Noelle Rodriguez—claim they were victims of sexual, racial, and religious harassment, assault, false imprisonment, and disability discrimination, in addition to other mistreatment, with part of the lawsuit centering on a night out in Amsterdam in February 2023, during which Lizzo allegedly pressured Davis into interacting with a nude performer.
The lawsuit also accuses Lizzo of creating a toxic work environment by questioning Davis’s commitment to her job—something the latter understood as a “thinly veiled” allusion to her weight gain, which Lizzo “had previously called attention to.” Williams and Davis both claim they were wrongfully terminated (with Rodriguez resigning in protest following their termination).
How is Lizzo’s dance-team captain, Shirlene Quigley, involved?
According to NBC News, the lawsuit accuses Quigley of “proselytizing to other performers and deriding those who had premarital sex while sharing lewd sexual fantasies, simulating oral sex, and publicly discussing the virginity of one of the plaintiffs.” The plaintiffs’ lawyer, Ron Zambrano, said the plaintiffs believe Lizzo was aware of their complaints about Quigley. “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.
What kind of fallout has the lawsuit against Lizzo had?
Lizzo is normally named in the lyrics of Beyoncé’s song “Break My Soul (Queen’s Remix),” but at a concert in Boston on Tuesday, Beyoncé appeared to skip over the singer’s name. Meanwhile, many of Lizzo’s fans are expressing their dismay over the performer’s alleged inappropriate workplace behavior on social media.
Has Lizzo responded publicly to these allegations?
Yes. On Thursday, August 3, Lizzo took to Twitter and Instagram to share a response to the allegations from her former tour dancers.
“These last few days have been gut-wrenchingly difficult and overwhelmingly disappointing,” she wrote. “My work ethic, morals, and respectfulness have been questioned. My character has been criticized. Usually I chose not to respond to false allegations but these are as unbelievable as they sound and too outrageous to not be addressed.”
She continued: “The sensationalized stories are coming from former employees who have already publicly admitted they were told their behavior on tour was inappropriate and unprofessional.”
The singer went on to explain that she does not want to be “looked at as a victim.”
“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.
“I’m 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 in support to lift me up during this difficult time.”
