Beyoncé appeared to express her support for her fellow pop star Lizzo, by shouting out the “About Damn Time” singer amid an ongoing lawsuit filed by Lizzo’s former dancers.
Lizzo, 35, is being sued by former members of her dance troupe for alleged sexual harassment and weight shaming. The Grammy winner has denied the allegations, stating that the claims are “false”.
During a performance of “Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)” on Monday night (14 August), Beyoncé name-dropped Lizzo, seemingly sharing her support of the singer.
“Lizzo! I love you, Lizzo!” the musician said on stage at her Renaissance concert in Atlanta (via Variety).
Beyoncé’s special shout-out follows after she omitted Lizzo’s name in the lyrics of the same track during a show in Foxborough, Massachusetts on 1 August.
There is a segment in the song’s lyrics in which Beyoncé lists off a number of Black female artists, including Lizzo, Lauryn Hill, Betty Davis, and her sister Solange Knowles.
During that particular performance, which occurred a day after the lawsuit was made public, Beyoncé altered the lyrics, appearing to leave out Lizzo’s name on purpose.
Many fans took this to be a deliberate omission in response to the allegations. Lizzo’s name, however, was not the only one that Beyoncé cut out of the lyrics. She also left out Betty Davis, Solange Knowles, and Kelly Rowland.
The original lyrics to the song are: “Betty Davis / Solange Knowles / Badu / Lizzo / Kelly Rowl’.”
On Tuesday (1 August), Beyoncé simply repeated “Badu” four times, in a reference to US musician Erykah Badu.
Many fans believe that the amended lyrics were not a snub to Lizzo but, in fact, a reference to Badu’s recent remarks “accusing” Beyoncé of copying her style.
A representative for Beyoncé did not respond to a request for comment at the time.
The singer’s fashion designer mother Tina, however, shut down claims that the move was in response to the lawsuit.
“She also didn’t say her own sisters name yal should really stop,” commented Lawson on Instagram.
In the weeks since the lawsuit was filed, Ron Zambrano, the attorney representing the dancers, told NBC news that his law firm is now looking into allegations from at least six other people. who claim that they toured with Lizzo and worked on her Amazon Studios reality show, Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls.
Zambrano told the news outlet that the allegations are regarding “sexually charged environment” and “failure to pay employees”.
The Independent has contacted Lizzo’s representatives for comment.
On Thursday (3 July), Lizzo responded to the 44-page lawsuit on social media, telling fans that “there is nothing I take more seriously than the respect we deserve as women in the world”.
The singer-songwriter described the allegations as being “as unbelievable as they sound and too outrageous not to be addressed”. You can find a full breakdown of the allegations here.
