Lizzo opened up about the controversy of her song “GRRRLS” and explained why she adjusted the song’s lyrics after fans criticized her for using an ableist slur.
To recap, the song originally contained the lyrics, “Hold my bag, b****, hold my bag / Do you see this s***? I’m a spaz.” She has since adjusted the last sentence to “Hold me back” after fans pointed out the word is ableist.
Lizzo opened up about the controversy to Vanity Fair and explained, “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 continued. “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.”
Added Lizzo, “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.”
Lizzo also called out those who continue to criticize her for using the word. She asked, “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?”
Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
Related Posts
Lineup announced for ‘SNL50: The Anniversary Special’
February 6, 2025
NBCUniversalf you've lost track of specials celebrating the 50th anniversary of Saturday Night…
Music notes: Ariana Grande, G-Eazy and more
February 6, 2025
Ariana Grande appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Wednesday night and took part in one of the show's…
Taylor Swift, Gracie Abrams, Charli XCX, Post Malone have Record Store Day releases for you
February 6, 2025
RepublicPost Malone is this year's Record Store Day ambassador, so it's no surprise that he's…
Miley Cyrus, Sabrina Carpenter & more featured on ‘SNL50: The Anniversary Special’
February 6, 2025
NBC UniversalIf you've lost track of specials celebrating the 50th anniversary of Saturday Night…
Kendrick Lamar says it means everything to be first hip-hop act to headline a Super Bowl halftime show
February 6, 2025
Photo by Astrida Valigorsky/Getty ImagesAll eyes will be on Kendrick Lamar when he takes the field…
Outfits from Chappell Roan, Charli XCX on the block for LA wildfire aid
February 6, 2025
Courtesy Julien's AuctionsOutfits worn on album covers, in music videos or onstage by artists like…
Sarah Michelle Gellar confirms ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ reboot: ‘This will be for you’
February 6, 2025
Warner Bros via Getty ImagesBuffy is coming back.Sarah Michelle Gellar has confirmed she is…
Liam Payne’s girlfriend speaks out: ‘I never would have thought this event would have occurred’
February 6, 2025
Darren Gerrish/Getty Images for BFCIn an interview with The Sun published on Wednesday, Feb. 5,…