FEATURE:
Your Truth Hurts
PHOTO CREDIT: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
Why Lizzo’s Experiences of Being Body-Shamed Are Particularly Unsettling
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ONE of music’s queens…
PHOTO CREDIT: Isha Shah
the incredible Lizzo (Melissa Viviane Jefferson) was born in Detroit, Michigan. She moved to Houston, Texas, with her family when she was ten years old. After college she moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she began her recording music. Someone who has released some truly wonderful albums, her most recent, Special, was came out last year (to huge critical acclaim and commercial success). She is a human who should receive only love and respect! Unfortunately, like many women in the industry, she has been subjected to body-shaming. Many women experience this particularly horrible and upsetting form of bullying and toxicity. Whether it is a nasty comment or shot at their figure or a particular aspect of their body, it is degrading, upsetting, horrible and unnecessary. In all case, it is complete lies. I have seen videos and posts of Lizzo performing, and the comments underneath feature people commenting on her weight. Making vile remarks about her body and size. It is appalling and troubling that there are these amazing people in music on the brink of quitting because of the trolling and bullying they receive! A form of abuse and discrimination, Lizzo has reacted to the insults and sizeist comments she has seen. This NME article explains more:
“Lizzo has addressed the body shaming and online bullying she receives on social media, saying that she’s close to quitting music.
The pop singer took to Twitter to address a video of her tribute to Tina Turner that was posted by YouTuber Layah Heilpern in which she commented about Lizzo’s weight and diet. Lizzo quote tweeted the video and replied: “I just logged on the app and this is the type of shit I see about me.”
“It’s really starting to make me hate the world,” she continued. “I’m tired of explaining myself all the time and I just wanna get on this app w/out seeing my name in some bullshit.” She also said that all the talk of her weight made her feel like quitting her music career.
Other commenters were quick to weigh in on the criticism, with one person saying that the size of her body is her brand. In response to this comment, the four-time Grammy winner wrote: “I’m not trying to be fat. I’m not trying to be smaller. I’m literally just trying to live and be healthy.”
She continued: “”This is what my body looks like even when I’m eating super clean and working out! Y’all speak on shit y’all know NOTHING ABOUT, and I’m starting to get heated.
One of her fial tweets about the situation read: “The Love definitely do not outweigh the Hate on social media … all because I’m fat? This is CRAZY.” Lizzo has since made her Twitter account private.
The singer also took to TikTok to share a video of her going for her “bad bitch walk” while listening to Beyonce‘s album ‘Renaissance’, explaining that she had a really bad day where she was “very angry at the world” over “mean shit” about her online.
She reiterated that “there are days when the hate outweighs the love so badly” that she wants to “quit music and just disappear”. She added: “I definitely have enough money to go and buy a farm and just never fuck with anybody again.”
Lizzo explained that lyrics from Beyonce’s album helped her decide to “get up, get out and get some sun” as an escape.
In other news, Lizzo is set to play this year’s Glastonbury festival on Saturday, June 24 on the Pyramid stage. She is also set to play this year’s Mad Cool Festival on July 6. NME named her as one of the must-see acts at Mad Cool”.
Lizzo is not alone in this, sadly. Many other women have had to deal with this sort of thing. Whether it is people (mainly men) commenting about their weight and being very nasty, or there are lurid and sexual comments about their bodies. Any form of abuse is horrible, but the fact that one of the music world’s most inspiring and talented people is considering quitting should give everyone pause for thought. Social media sites near to crack down on the fact that these sort of vile and nasty comments are getting through. I know you cannot mediate and moderate everything that comes in, but there needs to be filters where this sort of toxicity is filtered out – and those responsible for committing this kind of hate should be banned! I know that Lizzo will continue and storm the stage, but she shouldn’t have to be at a point where she is so upset and horrified that it would be easier to quit! There has been body-shaming and fatphobia in the music industry for years and, as we speak, Lizzo has locked her Twitter account so that she does not have to read the responses she gets. Someone so adored and giving to her fans, it would be a huge tragedy if the music world lost her! Women face so many challenges and hurdles in the industry. They should not have to deal with online bullies and trolls who are commenting on their bodies!
Comments about her size will no doubt impact her confidence and esteem. She is a very desirable and sexy woman, but this notion that every woman has to be thin to be seen as sexy and desirable is something that needs to be dispelled and eradicated. Lizzo is a compelling and wonderful live performer! That is where the focus needs to be! If people are watching videos of her perform and focusing on her weight, that is something that needs to stop. I am not sure what will happen now, and whether Lizzo – who has faced body-shaming since started her career – will keep going. Let’s hope she does! She is one of many women who have to read and hear people body-shame them. The beautiful and inspiring Lizzo is very much needed in music. I think more light should be shed on fatphobia and body-shaming. It is a hugely intrusive and disgusting discrimination that is going to see many women (I know it also affects male and non-binary artists) quit the industry or scale back their live performances. At a time when we should be supporting and elevating incredible women in the industry, there is a small group of people who feel it necessary to leave despicable comments about Lizzo. It should be down to social media sites to better police and monitor this. Every Lizzo fan out there (me included) very much hopes that the mighty queen gets back on stage, puts out her amazing albums and…
KEEP going strong.