When it comes to ‘modern icon’ status, Lizzo instantly comes to mind. Known for her unapologetic personality and self-love anthems, the Grammy Award winner is proving she’s a fabulous force to be reckoned with.
“ I FEEL VERY LUCKY BECAUSE I don’t feel that weight gain is bad ANY MORE. NOR IS WEIGHT LOSS – it’s neutral”
With four Grammy Awards, an Emmy for Outstanding Competition Programme (check out For The Big Grrrls on Prime Video), a chart-topping album and a legion of devoted fans, Lizzo has solidified her place as one of the most influential voices in music today.
But it’s not just her incredible talent that’s making headlines. The ‘About Damn Time’ singer is also making waves for taking on fat-phobic critics, redefining body politics and spreading an inspiring message of self-love through her music. Constantly under scrutiny, Lizzo bites back and stuns the world, demanding equity and advocating for the underdog.
Just recently the ESPN hockey analyst PK Subban came under fire for making a tasteless on-air joke, suggesting that the audience should have packed “a Lizzo-sized lunch”. Well, you bet your boots she clapped back: “Officially in my ‘They don’t deserve me era’… I’m sorry that my perfect face and rocking body offend you. I can’t help that I’m God’s favourite!” she posted on Instagram.
THE WEIGHT OF IT ALL
No stranger to hate and bullying, the singer’s journey to success has been a long and challenging one. “People have been calling me fat my entire life,” she says. “If I lost weight, what would happen? Is my music and my weight so intrinsically connected?” In fact, she argues that it was music that allowed her to be herself.
Once a teen who struggled with self-acceptance while growing up in Minneapolis, Lizzo is now urging her countless followers to love and accept themselves for who they are. She’s collaborated with Fabletics to create revolutionary new shapewear, designed for all body types, that doesn’t idealise shapewear as a device to compress body fat or hide flaws. And today Yitty is praised for its inclusivity.
“I was like, I wanna create a product that, even if you see it, it’s not shameful. It’s not embarrassing. It’s actually sexy and liberating,” she states. “If you are confident in yourself and however you want yourself to be presented, and you’re doing well and doing it because you want to do it and not because someone is pressuring you, then more power to you.”
Lizzo has also openly discussed her issue with the term ‘body positivity. “I think it’s lazy for me to just say I’m body positive at this point,” she says.
“It’s easy. I would actually like to be body normative. I want to normalise my body. And not just be like, ‘Ooh, look at this cool movement. Being fat is body positive.’ No, being fat is normal. I think now I owe it to the people who started this to not just stop here. We have to make people uncomfortable again so that we can continue to change,” she adds. “And change is always uncomfortable, right?”
Despite what people may say about her weight, Lizzo leads a healthy lifestyle and is adamant about maintaining her fitness and mental health holistically, which she shares on TikTok to help others live their best lives.
“ I STAYED true to myself BECAUSE I WANTED TO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE. SO I HAD TO be that change”
“I try to keep everything I put in my body super clean. Health is something I prioritise, wherever that leads me physically. Like veganism… People were like, ‘You’re a vegan? What, are you deep-frying the lettuce!’ I’m not a vegan to lose weight, I just feel better when I eat plants,’ she asserts. “I feel very lucky because I don’t feel that weight gain is bad any more. Nor is weight loss — it’s neutral.”
FEEL-GOOD MUSIC
The ‘Good As Hell’ singer has been in the public eye for more than a decade, making history earlier this year as the first black woman to win Record of the Year at the Grammys since Whitney Houston back in 1994.
Lizzo also picked up last year’s coveted BET Impact Track award for the single ‘About Damn Time’ – an uplifting song about growth, change and letting yourself go into the blissful unknown. Whatever she releases, the star is committed to spreading love and light through her music.
“I’m glad I’m a rapper because I get to speak to these people who did not get spoken to in this genre,” she explains. “Every time I rap about being a big girl in a small world, it’s doing a couple things: it’s empowering my self-awareness, my body image, and it’s also making the statement that we are all bigger than this; we’re a part of something bigger than this and we should live in each moment knowing that.” Not too long ago, Lizzo faced critics head on regarding hurtful claims that challenged her identity and discourse.
“I am a black woman, I am making music from my black experience for me to heal myself from the experience we call life. If I can help other people, hell yeah!” She fought back: “Because we are the most marginalised and neglected people … we need self-love and self-love anthems more than anybody. So, am I making music for that girl right there who looks like me, who grew up in a place where she was under-appreciated and picked on and made to feel unbeautiful? Yes. It blows my mind when people say I’m not making music from a black perspective. How could I not do that as a black artist?”
The 35-year-old’s commercial success comes down to her empowering lyrics and catchy melodies. Songs like ‘Truth Hurts’ and the album Special are what sets Lizzo apart from most hip-hop artists today. “I like that I’m not typical. I like that I’m called ‘no-genre hip-hop’,” she laughs.
“ I’M SORRY THAT my perfect face and rocking body OFFEND YOU. I C AN’T HELP THAT I’M GOD’S FAVOURITE! ”
“I stayed true to myself because I wanted to make the world a better place, so I had to be that change… And now I look around and there’s all these songs about loving our bodies and feeling comfortable in our skin and feeling $#!@** good, and I’m just so proud to be a part of it. Because in a world that is a lot of darkness and a lot of scary $#!@**, I’d like to believe that not only can people do good, but we just are good – we are good inherently.”
WHAT MATTERS MOST
Right now, Lizzo is focusing on the positive and all the blessings in her life – one of them being actor and stand-up comedian Myke Wright.
The couple have been inseparable for the last two years, sparking rumours of an engagement that’s yet to be confirmed. “I’ve known him for over six years. He’s everything. We’re just in love,” she gushes. “We’re not playing any games with each other any more. We’re very much locked in. This is official. There’s nobody else I’m going to be with for the rest of my life.”
With love and positive energy in the air, the powerhouse keeps her circle small these days, keeping her private life off of social media for the most part, yet still providing a “support system” for fans who might need it. “I think that I don’t have no people with bad intentions around me no more. My circle is tight. My circle has good intentions, and they’re pure.”
And she’s not about hyper glamourising her career, either – it all comes down to having happiness and balance. “No matter how many awards I get, how much money I get, my mentality is work hard, play hard and do it because you love it.”
As Lizzo herself puts it, “I just want to spread love and positivity and remind people that they’re worthy.” And with her music, her message and her stellar example, she is doing just that.
QUICK Q&A
Favourite book:
The Bible
A risk you’re proud of taking:
Being myself
Favourite colour:
Pink
Dream musical supergroup:
Me, SZA, Doja Cat and Ariana Grande
If you could be remembered for just one thing, it would be:
Having made an impact that made the world better
Current musical crush:
Bad Bunny
Any other talents:
I play the flute
Words by: Charndré Emma Kippie
Photographs: gallo/getty images
