Lizzo Breaks Silence About Sexual Harassment Lawsuits

Lizzo is breaking her silence about the bombshell harassment lawsuit from her ex-dancers to clear the air and her name.

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After a year and a half away from the spotlight, the embattled singer is setting the record straight about the allegations against her. On Thursday, Lizzo sat down on Baby, This Is Keke Palmer to address the ongoing legal battle for the first and what she says will be the last time. The singer said she chose the show so that neither of them would “hold back,” and they didn’t.

Lizzo Was “Blindsided” By Allegations Of Assault & Harassment That “Never Happened”: “Let’s Be Clear, I Did Nothing Wrong”

The “Truth Hurts” singer recently returned to the scene following a much-needed break from fame. Lizzo took it back to her “career high” in August 2023, when she went from living the dream to facing the nightmare of a lawsuit. On the heels of her first arena tour featuring Watch Out for the Big Grrrls dancers from the Emmy-winning show, she was “completely surprised” by the lawsuit.

“I was literally living in my dream, and then the tour ended, and three ex-dancers just completely, like, blindsided me with a lawsuit,” she said. “I was very deeply hurt because these were three ex-dancers, so they weren’t on the tour. They didn’t, like, finish the tour out with us. But even regardless of that, these were people that I gave opportunities to.”

Lizzo was just as shocked as her fans about the allegations, which seemed to challenge everything she stands for. In August 2023, former backup dancers Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams, and Noelle Rodriguez accused Lizzo and her team of sexual harassment racial discrimination, assault, and a hostile work environment.

“These were people that — I liked them and appreciated them as dancers, respected 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 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 that it’s not,” she continued.

Keke asked what we all wanted to know about the specifics of the suit, like the knuckle-cracking motion behind the assault claim. Lizzo said she often does it as a flute player, but the incident in the filing “never happened. The host questioned the context, what Lizzo recalls, and whether the signer’s behavior lacked boundaries to keep things fully professional.

“Let’s be clear, I did nothing wrong,” Lizzo said.

However, she and Keke agreed on the need to be mindful of power dynamics even when you’re used to working with peers, hiring friends, or developing friendships through work. Despite having “no regrets,” she said “this experience taught me to set those kind of boundaries to protect them but also to protect myself.”

Daniels’ attorney Ron Zambrano clarified that Lizzo’s explanation of the dismissal ruling was incorrect.

“The lawsuit is still very active and has not been dismissed,” he told People about the formality to remove individuals in these kinds of suits against entities like the production company. “It by no means absolves Lizzo of the egregious claims that occurred on her watch.”

“It had nothing to do with the merits of the claims. The lawsuit still moves forward against Lizzo’s company, Big Grrl Touring,” he continued. “Lizzo and her tour manager will still be deposed in connection with the lawsuit.”

He also noted that, “Lizzo remains a defendant in the harassment lawsuit filed by dancers Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez, which is currently being reviewed by the court of appeal.

Check out Lizzo’s Baby, This Is Keke Palmer interview below.

See Lizzo’s side of the story about sex shows at the heart of the sexual harassment claims and Keke Palmer’s hard-hitting questions after the flip!

Lizzo Claims Burlesque And Sex Shows She Attended On Tour Were “Consensual” And “Not Mandatory”

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The sexual harassment claims shocked Lizzo the most, who explained that her invitations to sensual showcases while touring in Europe were “never mandatory.”  She described a casual open invitation to the Crazy Horse burlesque show in Paris and extending an offer to meet the performers after the show.

Again, Keke emphasized Lizzo’s position alone may have added pressure to the dancers’ decision to attend and show enthusiasm. Similar questions arose about the Bananenbar sex show in Amsterdam. “I’ve been waiting to get this off my chest,” Lizzo said about the shocking spectacle.

Lizzo said she “went on my own” to Bananenbar when a dancer “friend” mentioned having “nowhere to go” after a birthday dinner. Lizzo told them to “come through,” but “didn’t even know” everyone else was joining them until 17 people included themselves. She thought nothing of everyone pulling up for a “wild” but “very consensual” show:

“Everybody came through. We had a great time. There were moments because the performer is very consensual, but she’s also performing. So she’ll ask you. She’ll be like, ‘Would you like to do this? Would you like to do that?’ If you say ‘Yes,’ you do it. If you say ‘No,’ she’s like, ‘OK.’ Moves on.

“I have to stress how consensual it was because this bar has been like this since 1945. If they were doing things non-consensually, they would have been sued,” she continued.

When Keke asked if the “Good As Hell” singer’s “bar personality” could’ve come across wrong, Lizzo admitted “people I employ shouldn’t be privvy to how I am in a bar at this point. This experience taught me healthy boundaries,” she said.

Both women emphasized the importance of believing victims and taking assault seriously, even if Lizzo challenged some allegations as “silly” in context. She denied requesting, insisting, or coercing anyone to touch or engage the “erotic performers” during the show.

Zombrano also noted to People that the “Special” celeb’s “lack of awareness” about the power dynamics doesn’t absolve her.

“There is an utter lack of awareness by Lizzo failing to see how these young women on her team who are just starting their careers would feel pressured to accept an invitation from their global celebrity boss who rarely hangs out with them. There is a power dynamic in the boss-employee context that Lizzo utterly fails to appreciate,” he said.

Lizzo claims she will never discuss these allegations again. Yet, between the active lawsuits and her recently finished album, this won’t be the last we’ve heard about it.

What do you think about Lizzo’s new interview?