Lizzo's former backup dancers slam singer's response to lawsuit, call it 'disheartening' and 'frustrating'
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Lizzo's former backup dancers have hit back at the "Truth Hurts" singer's response to their bombshell lawsuit that alleged a toxic work environment including sexual harassment and incidents of body-shaming.
"It took me until actually leaving the camp that I figured out that everything that went on was bad, because I just chalked it up to, you know, oh, Lizzo might be a diva, or this is just the industry, this is what we go through," Arianna Davis told CNN Thursday, shortly after the 35-year-old musician released a statement refuting claims outlined in the suit filed by Davis, Crystal Williams, and Noelle Rodriguez on Tuesday in Los Angeles.
"Me, personally, looking at the response from Lizzo was so disheartening because she was there," Davis said. "She was there, and to fix your hand, to write on a piece of paper that you discredit everything we're saying, is incredibly frustrating."
Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images Lizzo
When asked if she thought Lizzo would ever resort to "physical violence" as retaliation, Rodriguez responded, "Yeah, I do."
She then went on to claim, "The facts of that were that she actually balled up her fists like this to me. She started cracking her knuckles, and she was like, 'You're so effing lucky that basically I'm not going to hit you.' I was in shock watching her do that and cracking her knuckles and acting as if she was going to come at me."
Rodriguez added that she thought Lizzo was "about to assault" her and claimed that the singer's best friend had to "physically hold her back."
Following their CNN appearance, the trio of former employees released a written statement addressing Lizzo's reaction on Thursday.
"Lizzo has failed her own brand and has let down her fans," the plaintiffs said in a joint statement through their attorney, Ron Zambrano. "Her denial of this reprehensible behavior only adds to our clients' emotional distress. The dismissive comments and utter lack of empathy are quite telling about her character and only serve to minimize the trauma she has caused the plaintiffs and other employees who have now come forward sharing their own negative experiences. While Lizzo notes it was never her intention 'to make anyone feel uncomfortable,' that is exactly what she did to the point of demoralizing her dancers and flagrantly violating the law."
Lizzo spoke out against the lawsuit for the first time on Thursday morning.
"These last few days have been gut-wrenchingly difficult and overwhelmingly disappointing," she wrote on social media. "My work ethic, morals, and respectfulness have been questioned. My character has been criticized. Usually I choose not to respond to false allegations, but these are as unbelievable as they sound and too outrageous to not be addressed. These sensationalized stories are coming from former employees who have already publicly admitted that they were told their behavior on tour was inappropriate and unprofessional."
Lizzo has built a career on music that promotes body positivity and self-empowerment through her lyrics, and she said she's "always been very passionate" about her artistry and takes her music seriously "because at the end of the day I only want to put out the best art that represents me and my fans."
She concluded her statement by saying her passion leads to "high standards" and it has forced her to make "hard decisions" related to the team around her.
"But it's never my intention to make anyone feel uncomfortable or like they aren't valued as an important part of the team," she said. "I am not here to be looked at as a victim, but I also know that I am not the villain that people and the media have portrayed me to be these last few days. I am very open with my sexuality and expressing myself, but I cannot accept or allow people to use that openness to make me out to be something I am not. There is nothing I take more seriously than the respect we deserve as women in the world. I know what it feels like to be body-shamed on a daily basis and would absolutely never criticize or terminate an employee because of their weight."
The suit alleges that Lizzo pressured one of her crew members to touch a nude performer at a strip club in Amsterdam and made "thinly veiled" criticisms about one dancer's weight, among other claims that the plaintiffs said contributed to a toxic work environment.
Representatives for Lizzo did not respond to EW's multiple requests for comment, nor did Shirlene Quigley, Lizzo's dance captain who was also named in the suit for religious harassment after dancers claimed that she "took every opportunity to proselytize" about her religion "to any and all in her presence regardless of protestations."
Quigley seemingly responded to the suit on Wednesday in an Instagram video in which she told her followers, "God loves you." Earlier in July, she shared another Instagram video with a caption that read, "Me telling everyone at work Jesus loves them."
In the days after the suit was filed, filmmaker Sophia Nahli Allison stated that she quit work on Max's Love, Lizzo documentary after she said she witnessed Lizzo creating an "extremely toxic and hostile working environment."
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