White women crying in “disappointment” about Lizzo is nothing short of their belief that fat Black women should always tend to their wounds coming to the surface. CW: diet talk By Rasheed Ajamu “Body Positivity” icon Lizzo recently decided to partake in a “JJ Smith’s 10-day smoothie detox” and gave her social media following a...
Tag: lizzo
Post
Lizzo, Whitney Houston, and The Curious Case of “Racial Transcendence”
We should be taking white audiences to task for seeking to divorce Black artists from their race instead of critiquing artists like Lizzo and Whitney for their contributions to pop. When Prince died April 21, 2016, many a music fan was completely caught off guard. Tributes flooded any and every social media platform. The Eiffel...
Post
Honoring The Fat Black Women Who Shaped Music For Generations
While many fat Black women have been pushed towards the back, there have also been many who have been trailblazers as solo acts. By Sydneysky G For years, it has been a running joke that fat women in the music industry are only supposed to be the background singers to thinner women. They are never...
Post
A Reminder For Black Women: You Don’t Owe The World A Damn Thing
Black women owe no explanations for blocking, muting, restricting, and reporting anyone that threatens the sanctity of the spaces you carve out for yourself. TW/CW: racism, sexism, misogynoir, eating disorders, mental illness, r/pe By Adrie Rose I haven’t been kicked out of anything in years. I haven’t been told not to come back to a...
Post
Unraveling The Fatphobia Behind The Criticisms Of Lizzo
To suggest that Lizzo needs to be “put down” is to recapitulate this trope about the “beastliness” of fat Black people. By Sydneysky G Let me start first by saying this: it’s because she’s fat. If I make nothing else clear, know that the reason for all of the vitriol Lizzo is experiencing is because...
Post
What Celebrities Get Wrong About Criticism
Conflating criticism with hate is dangerous. Criticism is how we encourage growth and positive change, while shame and hatred serve to stifle both. Late last week, I had the misfortune of learning who Sarah Dessen is. One of her tweets was circulating my timeline, where she commented on a screenshot of what she painted as...
Post
Every Body Positive Person Needs to Support Lizzo Right Now
It is not at all a stretch to fall hard for Lizzo. Her rhymes are masterful, her voice is velvety, and her beats are bouncing. So we need to pay her. Unless you’ve been hunkering down and avoiding all TV, print media and social feeds for some (stupid, orange, small-handed) reason, you’ve already heard of...
Post
Music Monday, 11/28: Chaz Bundick, Low Leaf, K’NAAN and Laura Gibson
This Music Monday is back on the eclectic tip with tons of great new songs. It starts off with the Hamilton mixtape, which everyone has been talking about since the cast of Hamilton told off the Vice President-elect last week. As Slate says of the track “Immigrants (We Get Job Done),” it is the “proud,...
Post
Music Monday, 10/17: Blonde Redhead, Lizzo, Petite Noir and Kadjha Bonet
This week’s Music Monday is a mellow but uplifting mix of Afrofuturistic R&B, hip-hop, and electro-centric indie. Lizzo’s new track, “Scuse Me,” opens the mix with its message of self-love and affirmations. “Mirror, mirror on the wall, tell me what you see/It’s that, oh my God, it’s looking heavenly,” and “I don’t need a crown...
Post
Music Monday, Jul 4: Lizzo, Blood Orange, Rihanna, and Maxwell
Independence Day, July 4th, whatever you choose to call it… it’s still a Music Monday. Here’s some bangers and ballads to keep you going through your work day, dancing at the grill, or blocking out the uninvited *bangs* and *pows* for those who are coping with PTSD. We start with Lizzo’s uplifting “Good As Hell.”...