Lizzo says she was ‘deeply hurt’ by sexual harassment lawsuit

CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses topics that may be disturbing to some readers.

Special singer Lizzo talked about the explosive lawsuits filed against her in 2023 which included allegations of sexual harassment, body shaming and a toxic work environment.

In August 2023, the 36-year-old singer was sued by three former dancers — Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams And Noelle Rodriguez – for allegedly creating a hostile work environment and sexually harassing him.

A month later, Asha Danielwho worked for Lizzo as a stylist, also filed a complaint against the singerher wardrobe Amanda Nomua and Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc, alleging that Lizzo permitted a sexualized and racist work environment.

Almost over a year later, Lizzo finally opened up in-depth about the allegationsin an interview with the actor Kéké Palmer.

Taking to the Baby, this is Keke Palmer podcast, Lizzo revealed she was “completely surprised” and “deeply hurt” by the lawsuit.

“These were people that I had given opportunities to, these were people that I loved them and appreciated them as dancers, so I was like, ‘What? But then I heard all the other things like sexual harassment, and I was like, they’re trying really hard, I don’t know what they’re trying to do, but that’s the kind of thing the media can transform into something. that’s not the case,” Lizzo shared before calling the allegations made in the lawsuit “ridiculous” and “stupid.”

Later in the podcast, Keke pushed Lizzo to share her version of one of the explosive claims made by the three dancers, where they were allegedly under pressure to go to a nudist bar.

Lizzo began by explaining that she often attends dance recitals and burlesque shows when she is in Europe and that in this case she went to a venue known as Crazy Horse in Paris.

“So I’ve been going there for years and I always invite artists to say, ‘Hey, oh my God, you should come see this show and get inspired’ and every time I go, my artists come and they watch the show and everything has always gone well,” Lizzo explained.

“This time I gave an invitation, it wasn’t obligatory, it was just ‘Hey I’m going to Crazy Horse, everyone is invited if you want to come you can come’. And a lot of people didn’t come.

“We watched the show. It was an incredible show and the Crazy Horse artists wanted to meet me afterwards, because you know it’s me, and I extended that.

Lizzo went on to claim that all of the dancers – including those involved in the lawsuit against her – agreed to meet with the artists and participated in the meeting. The singer then assured the podcast host that nothing beyond the meeting happened and that they all went home after the event.

Throughout the podcast, Lizzo continued to deny all allegations made against her in all lawsuits and continued to state that she did not commit any wrongdoing.

“Let’s be clear. I didn’t do anything wrong so I have no regrets but I now have this learned experience,” Lizzo shared.

Where are the cases against Lizzo?

At one point in the podcast, Lizzo pointed out that she was “dismissed” in one of the cases against her.

“Not abandoned, fired. “It means a judge saw this and in court he said ‘OK, we can’t allow this to happen’ because the evidence went against the allegations,” she said, referring to Daniel’s lawsuit which was dismissed earlier this month, by. BBC.

However, in a statement to PEOPLE, Daniel’s lawyer Ron Zambrano clarified what Lizzo said on Keke’s podcast.

“The lawsuit is still very active and has not been dismissed. The decision was not made for lack of evidence, but rather for reasons of procedural competence. This in no way absolves Lizzo of the egregious allegations that occurred on her watch,” he said.

“All of the individually named defendants were dismissed due to the jurisdictional limitations of Title VII and FLSA claims that no single individual can be liable for these claims. Ergo, no individual, whether Lizzo or the person sweeping the floor behind her, can be a defendant under the FLSA or Title VII. This is why Lizzo and her tour manager were left out of the deal.

“It had nothing to do with the merits of the claims. The lawsuit continues against Lizzo’s company, Big Grrl Touring, for all claims except the overtime allegation. The ninth cause of action for unpaid overtime was also dismissed on jurisdictional, not evidentiary, grounds, since unpaid overtime claims only apply to work performed in the United States. Lizzo and her tour manager will still be deposed in the lawsuit.

By BillboardDavis, Williams and Rodriguez’s case was put on hold in March after the singer tried to appeal a judge’s ruling that rejected the singer’s efforts to get the lawsuit dismissed under the anti-SLAPP law of the state. The case is scheduled to be heard on January 14, 2025.

Although Keke’s podcast is the first time Lizzo has delved into the allegations, it’s not the first time the singer denied what was alleged in the lawsuits.

At the time the lawsuits were filed, Lizzo posted a statement on Instagram, responding to the allegations in a text message.

“These past few days have been extremely difficult and extremely disappointing,” Lizzo wrote in the statement originally released on August 3, 2024.

“My work ethic, morals and respect have been called into question.

“These sensational stories come from former employees who have already publicly admitted that they were told their behavior on tour was inappropriate and unprofessional.”

In the same statement, Lizzo denied the sexual harassment allegations as well as body shaming allegations made by her former employees in the lawsuits.

“I am very open about my sexuality and my expression, but I cannot accept or allow people to use that openness to pass me off as something that I am not,” she added.

“I know what it feels like to be humiliated on a daily basis and I would never criticize or fire an employee because of their weight.”

Lizzo has continued to deny all allegations made against her in the explosive lawsuits.