Lawsuit Accuses Popstar Lizzo of Sexual Harassment and Toxic Workplace

Pop icon Lizzo is facing major backlash after three of her former dancers accused her of creating a hostile work environment that was laced with sexual harassment, threats of violence, and body shaming.

Lizzo’s empowering lyrics and catchy tunes helped the superstar rise to popularity with her breakout album in 2016. With a brand built around body positivity and inclusion, Lizzo became the symbol of what's possible when you can feel comfortable in your own skin. In a new lawsuit filed by three former backup dancers, the pop star is accused of doing the exact opposite.

The lawsuit was filed earlier this month in Los Angeles Superior Court by lawyers representing Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams, and Noelle Rodriguez. The lawsuit names Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Jefferson, along with her production company, Big Grrrl Big Touring, and her company’s dance captain Shirlene Quigley.

The allegations range in severity with the most alarming claim being that Lizzo created a toxic work environment that consisted of bullying, harassment, and threats of termination if dancers failed to fall in line with Lizzo’s demands.

This hostile work environment resulted in one of the backup dancers being coerced into touching a nude performer during an outing in Amsterdam's red light district. The lawsuit describes dancer Arianna Davis as being pressured by Lizzo to engage in sexually charged behavior. According to the suit, during the outing, Lizzo “turned her attention to Ms. Davis and began pressuring Ms. Davis to touch the breasts of one of the nude women.” When Davis declined, Lizzo led a chant that “grew louder and more strident, demanding a visibly uncomfortable Ms. Davis to engage with the performer.” Davis eventually succumbed to the pressure and engaged with the performer.

The lawsuit goes on, “Plaintiffs were aghast with how little regard Lizzo showed for the bodily autonomy of her employees and those around her, especially in the presence of many people whom she employed.”

Although the lawsuit says outings such as this were not mandatory, they did help dancers yield favoritism with the pop star. Dancers who joined in on such outings had a greater sense of job security, the suit claims.

Davis has made other claims accusing the pop star of fat-shaming her. During a performance at the South by Southwest music festival, Lizzo indirectly called Davis’ weight into question, a behavior that goes directly against Lizzo’s brand of body positivity.

The plaintiffs also claim that instances of religious and racial harassment occurred, specifically at the hands of dance captain Quigley. Quigley, who is described as a religious individual, is accused of pushing her faith on the dancers.

Other allegations made against the defendants include false imprisonment, lost wages, and a workplace riddled with threats of termination, berating, and bullying.

The lawsuit mentions an instance in which Davis recorded a meeting because of a medical condition she had. When Lizzo found out about the recording, she “became furious, hurling expletives at the group and stated that she was going to go around the room, person-by-person until someone told Lizzo who made the recording.”

Lizzo’s legal team has pushed to discredit Davis by releasing an audition tape to Lizzo’s second season of her Grammy-winning show, “Watch Out for the Big Grrrls.” During the audition tape, Davis celebrated the pop star by sharing, “It’s been so amazing and such a beautiful journey,” “I look up to her so much; I just want to follow in her footsteps,” and “I just want to share that with the Queen Lizzo herself.”

Lizzo’s legal team points out the tape was filmed after the allegations in the lawsuit were made, adding, “These do not sound like the words of someone who was harassed or discriminated against by someone they then described as ‘THE QUEEN.’”

Davis responded to Lizzo’s legal team saying, “Right up until the last minute, I didn’t realize how bad it was and how much I was being taken advantage of. I just genuinely wanted to save my job. This video further explains how much I was trying to please Lizzo."

After remaining mum for days after the lawsuit was filed, Lizzo eventually responded to the claims in an Instagram post. She calls the allegations “false” and “outrageous” adding, “These last few days have been gut-wrenchingly difficult and overwhelmingly disappointing," and that "My work ethic, morals and respectfulness have been questioned. My character has been criticized."

Attorney Ron Zambrano, who is representing one of the dancers, shared that Lizzo's response “only adds to our client’s emotional distress” and that “Lizzo has failed her own brand and has let down her fans,” adding, “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.”