Members of Lizzo’s team, such as dancers, a creative director and a documentary maker, have spoken out against the singer after she was accused of creating a hostile work environment.
Lizzo, real name Melissa Viviane Jefferson, is also facing a lawsuit that alleges she fat-shamed and sexually harassed three of her dancers, and also includes allegations of religious and racial harassment, discrimination, assault and false imprisonment.
After the news was made public, many people who have worked with Lizzo in the past spoke out about their own experiences, with words like “gaslit,” “disrespect,” “arrogant” and “abuse of power” being mentioned.
![Multiple Lizzo collaborators come out](https://i0.wp.com/regalrumination.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/multiple-lizzo-collaborators-come-out.jpg?resize=1200%2C860)
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A former dancer who worked with Lizzo, Courtney Hollinquest, spoke out on her stories and confirmed that while she’s not part of the lawsuit, she agrees with the things Lizzo is accused of.
“This was very much my experience in my time there. Big shoutout to the dancers who had the courage to bring this to light,” Hollinquest wrote on Tuesday.
Lizzo’s former creative director, Quinn Wilson, agreed with Hollinquest’s statement. “I haven’t been a part of that world for three years, for a reason. I very much applaud the dancers’ courage to bring this to light. And I grieve parts of my own experience. I’d appreciate space to understand my feelings,” she wrote.
weighed in, stating that she doesn’t usually do so but felt compelled here. She claimed to have been making a documentary of Lizzo in 2019 but had to walk away after two weeks.
“I was treated with such disrespect by her,” Allison said on her social media accounts. “I witnessed how arrogant, self-centered, and unkind she is. I was not protected and was thrown into a s*** situation with little support. My spirit said to run as fast as you […] can and I’m so grateful I trusted my gut.”
“I felt gaslit and was deeply hurt, but I’ve healed.” Allison continued. “This kind of abuse of power happens far too often.”
Lizzo and her representatives have yet to respond to the allegations made against her, nor have they commented on the lawsuit. Regalrumination.com reached out to her team via email for comment on Wednesday.
Unlike former members of her team, Lizzo has yet to post anything on social media since the allegations were made public.
Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez are the former dancers bringing the lawsuit, which was filed in Los Angeles on Tuesday, August 1, 2023. Between 2021 and 2023 they allege that they were “forced to endure sexually denigrating behavior” and “pressured into participating in disturbing sex shows.”
Lizzo’s production company Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc. has also been accused of racial discrimination as Black members of the dance troupe were “treated differently” to other members of the team, the lawsuit alleges. The company was behind Lizzo’s 2022 competition reality show on Prime.
Two of the three dancers claim to have met Lizzo during production of the reality show in March 2021.
Another person who was part of the attempted documentary in 2019, Charlene Sanchez, backed up filmmaker Allison’s claim on Instagram. “This is all true. I had to vent to so many of my friends about it. It was such a small crew and the experience of working with Lizzo was a nightmare,” Sanchez wrote.
Lizzo became a trending topic across social media with people weighing in to discuss the allegations made against her. user @culturework, who has more than 60,000 followers, made several videos unpacking the allegations made against Lizzo, both from the lawsuit and from those who worked with her.
Looking at Allison’s experience with Lizzo, @culturework stated there was not actually anything wrong with the way the singer is described by the filmmaker. “Lizzo is allowed to be mean. And she’s allowed to be arrogant, self-centered and unkind. She’s allowed to be a wolf. She’s allowed to be a shark if she wants to. She is not required to be humble or jolly or soft,” @culturework said.
Some people in the comments section added that there may be sexist notions at play. “Why do we expect women to be polite/soft/kind 24/7 but men are celebrated for it?” one TikTok user asked.
Update: 8/2/2023 at 5:42 a.m. ET This article was updated to include details of the lawsuit and comment from Sanchez and @Culturework.