Lizzo Says Her Backup Dancers’ Lawsuits Are ‘Ridiculous’
In 2023, four of Lizzo’s former employees sued her in two separate lawsuits, claiming she and her dance captain, Shirlene Quigley, had encouraged misconduct, sexually harassed backup dancers, and body-shamed one of the plaintiffs. Lizzo has denied their claims, both in an Instagram post and through her attorneys, who’ve moved to have both suits dismissed. In a new episode of Keke Palmer’s podcast, Lizzo addressed the allegations at length for the first time, calling the lawsuits “ridiculous” and “very silly.”
Lizzo said she was “just completely blindsided” by the suit Crystal Williams, Arianna Davis, and Noelle Rodriguez filed against her in August 2023, shortly after she wrapped her Special Tour. “I was very deeply hurt,” she said. “These were people that I gave opportunities to. I liked them and appreciated them as dancers, respected them as dancers.” She went on, “But then I heard all the other things like sexual harassment, and I was, like, They’re trying — well, I don’t know what they’re trying to do, but these are the types of things that the media can turn into something it’s not.”
Lizzo mentioned that she got “dismissed from the case,” referring to the fact that a Los Angeles judge ruled earlier this month that her wardrobe assistant, Asha Daniels, could not sue her as an individual. Lizzo’s production company, Big Grrrl Big Touring Inc., is still a defendant in Daniels’s ongoing suit, and the lawsuit from her former dancers is on hold while Lizzo appeals a judge’s decision to reject her request to have it dismissed. “We’re continuing to fight the other claims until they’re dismissed,” she told Palmer. Later, she added, “Let’s be clear, I did nothing wrong. So I have no regrets. But I do have this learned experience that is preparing me for the boss that I am becoming.”
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