Warning: Discussion of sexual harassment.
Earlier this month, Lizzo was accused of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment by three of her former employees.
Filing a lawsuit in Los Angeles, the plaintiffs — Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams, and Noelle Rodriguez — alleged that Lizzo berated and later fired a dancer over their weight gain, pressured dancers to participate in a sex show, and had her dancers do an “excruciating” 12-hour rehearsal, among other claims.
As soon as details of the lawsuit were made public on Aug. 1, Lizzo faced heaps of backlash from appalled fans — many of whom were especially shocked given that the singer has spent years publicly celebrating body diversity and inclusion.
Hours after the lawsuit came to light, fans speculated that Beyoncé had subtly reacted to the claims made against Lizzo during her concert in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
While performing “Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)” at her show, Beyoncé appeared to omit Lizzo’s name from a list of iconic Black women in music featured in the lyrics. Originally, Beyoncé sings: “Betty Davis / Solange Knowles / Badu / Lizzo / Kelly Rowl,” but that night, she chose to sing Erykah Badu’s name four times instead of Lizzo’s.
Whether an intentional snub or not, the footage of Beyoncé immediately caused a stir online — eventually prompting her mom, Tina Knowles, to speak out about the clip.
Tina appeared to defend her daughter in a comment left under an Instagram post that said Beyoncé “skipped over” Lizzo’s name. Tina wrote, “She also didn't say her own sister's name. [Y'all] should really stop.”
The following day, Lizzo wound up issuing a statement denying the claims made by her former dancers in their lawsuit. “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 wrote, calling the accusations “false.”
But amid all of this, Beyoncé has now made it clear that she has nothing but “love” for Lizzo.
At her concert in Atlanta, Georgia this week, Beyoncé not only made sure to include Lizzo’s name in her “Break My Soul” tribute list, but also gave her an exclusive shoutout on stage.
“I love you, Lizzo!” she can be heard shouting in a viral clip currently circulating across social media.
Several fans were left disappointed at Beyoncé’s choice to publicly support Lizzo in light of the allegations, and called the entire thing “disheartening.”
“Beyoncé supporting lizzo openly on stage is very disappointing,” one person wrote.
“She can't even not know the allegations since her mother cleared the rumours 2 weeks ago about her skipping Lizzo's name over the allegations lmao, that's just nasty,” someone else said in response to speculation that she might not have known about the extent of the claims.
