In a new interview, Lizzo opened up about what she thinks of the backlash she received upon swapping out the ableist lyrics on ‘Grrrls’.
While there were many people who applauded Lizzo for changing the ableist lyric on her track ‘Grrrls’, there were some – reportedly Charlamagne tha God and Jerrod Carmichael – who thought she should have left the song as is, given that the word meant something different within the Black community.
In a new interview with Vanity Fair, Lizzo opened up about why she decided to remove the lyric altogether. Citing Nina Simone’s example, she said: “Nina Simone changed lyrics—is she not an artist? Language changes generationally; Nina Simone said you cannot be an artist and not reflect the times.”
The singer added: “So am I not being an artist and reflecting the times and learning, listening to people, and making a conscious change in the way we treat language, and help people in the way we treat people in the future?”
The singer also expressed her thanks to the internet for pointing out the controversy around the term. “I’d never heard it used as a slur against disabled people, never ever. The music I make is in the business of feeling good and being authentic to me. Using a slur is unauthentic to me, but I did not know it was a slur.” she explained to Vanity Fair.
She added, however, that having heard it being used in a certain context did not absolve her of the responsibility to learn about the larger meaning. She said: “It’s a word I’ve heard a lot, especially in rap songs, and with my Black friends and in my Black circles: It means to go off, turn up. I used [it as a] verb, not as a noun or adjective.”
“I used it in the way that it’s used in the Black community. The internet brought it to my attention, but that wouldn’t [have been enough] to make me change something.” Hence, the Nina Simone example.
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Elsewhere in the interview, the singer also opened up about why she didn’t feel boxed in by the body positivity debate around her. To her, her music and weight have never been connected.
“Is my music and my weight so intrinsically connected that if I were to lose weight, I’d lose fans or lose validity? I don’t care!” the singer said, adding that she makes lifestyle choices that feel personal to her and not because of expectations.
“Like veganism, people were like, ‘You’re a vegan? What, are you deep frying the lettuce?’ I’m not a vegan to lose weight, I just feel better when I eat plants.” she said.
The singer went on to add that she felt ‘lucky’ for no longer thinking of weight gain as a bad thing.
“It sucks that we associate weight gain with the negative thing that causes it. It’s mixing this beautiful thing that’s food—and nourishing ourselves with it, but it’s the stress that’s the bad thing, not the 20 pounds. I feel very lucky because I don’t feel that weight gain is bad anymore. Nor is weight loss—it’s neutral.” she said.
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Check out ‘About Damn Time’ by Lizzo:
