Music superstar Lizzo is being sued for the second time in two months by wardrobe designer Asha Daniels, a staff member on her 2023 tour. The music superstar faces fresh allegations of sexual and racial harassment, disability discrimination, forced labor, assault, and wrongful dismissal.
Who is Lizzo?
From a young age, Lizzo experienced discrimination due to her size. However, the resilient “It’s About Damn Time” singer became a role model of self-confidence with her unapologetic stance on self-acceptance and diversity. The rise of social media created a safe haven where she could share her point of view with others.
She moved to Minneapolis in 2011 with a new goal: a career in popular music. Lizzo’s talent landed her on the radar of music legend Prince, who made her a collaborator on his 2014 album Plectrumelectrum. She got a record deal as a solo artist with Atlantic Records in 2016 and released the album “Cuz I Love You” in 2019. Her single “Truth Hurts” sold an eye-popping 17 million copies.
The success of the song landed Lizzo in a copyright scandal. British singer Mina Lioness took to social media to claim that Lizzo plagiarized a line from one of her memes for “Truth Hurts.” Lizzo credited Lioness as a co-writer after a chaotic conflict in the public forum. It was the first but not the last of the star’s legal troubles.
Details of the new allegations
Wardrobe designer Asha Daniels, who worked on Lizzo’s 2023 tour, has filed a lawsuit against Lizzo, Amanda Nomura, Carlina Gugliotta, and Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc. She alleges that they created and failed to remedy a hostile work environment. The plaintiff claims to have experienced sexual and racial harassment, forced labor, disability discrimination, illegal retaliatory dismissal, and assault.
Daniels alleges that she was monitored and controlled by Nomura, Lizzo’s tour manager. Moreover, she claims she was not permitted to interact with Lizzo due to the Grammy Award winner allegedly being “jealous.”
The lawsuit also alleges that the tour had a “culture of racism and bullying.” Daniels allegedly saw first-hand that Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams, Noelle Rodriguez, and other Black female dancers had to change costumes in front of the stage crew, who she says would “lewdly gawk, sneer, and giggle” at them.
Daniels alleges that Nomura made racist and fatphobic remarks about Lizzo and the other dancers on several occasions. Daniels, a Black woman, claims that she confronted Nomura about her alleged misogyny and fatphobia in addition to the working conditions, but Nomura routinely ignored her.
Daniels claims Nomura pushed and shoved her after the tour manager rolled a clothing rack over her foot and injured her ankle. She was allegedly denied medical care and made to perform physical labor beyond the scope of her contract.
The lawsuit also claims that a staff member shared an inappropriate image in a group chat that included the Grammy Award winner and her management team. Furthermore, she alleges that she was privy to discussions between Nomura and the management staff about “hiring sex workers for lewd acts, attending sex shows, and buying hard drugs.”
The lawsuit claims that the cumulative effect of exposure to the work environment on Lizzo’s tour left Daniels with ongoing anxiety, panic attacks, migraines, and post-traumatic stress disorder. She is seeking undisclosed damages.
Lizzo’s response to the allegations
Lizzo denied all of Daniels’s allegations in a statement made by her spokesman, Stefan Friedman, to Deadline:
“As Lizzo receives a Humanitarian Award tonight from the Black Music Action Coalition for the incredible charitable work she has done to lift up all people, an ambulance-chasing lawyer tries to sully this honor by recruiting someone to file a bogus, absurd publicity-stunt lawsuit who, wait for it, never actually met or even spoke with Lizzo.”
The new lawsuit clearly states that Daniels was forbidden to interact with the star. However, time will tell if the court finds Lizzo culpable as the owner of Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc., the company that allegedly created the problematic working conditions.
Impact of the lawsuits on Lizzo’s brand
The allegations against Lizzo have generated significant controversy and a deluge of think-pieces about the shadow aspect of human nature that sometimes sees those who have suffered inflict harm on others. The lawsuits have started a discussion about internalized fatphobia, misogyny, and anti-blackness. The accusations against Lizzo have harmed her once unimpeachable reputation by implying that she does not practice moral consistency. Though Lizzo has denied the allegations of body shaming and sexual harassment, they have dealt a blow to her brand of celebrating body positivity.
Nevertheless, she has received support from her peers, including Beyoncé. Some of Lizzo’s other backup dancers took to social media to show support for the Grammy Award winner. Her single, “Pink”, was featured on the original soundtrack for the film Barbie (2023).
Summary
Lizzo is a one-of-a-kind star who courageously transcended discrimination to rise to the top echelons of the entertainment industry. However, she is at the helm of a vast empire. It takes dedication and finesse to create an equal workplace where all employees are treated with kindness and respect. The spate of lawsuits against Lizzo and her team suggests that these essential competencies may have been lacking among core members of her staff.
