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Lizzo, the popular 35-year-old singer, songwriter, and rapper, was sued on Tuesday, August 1, 2023, by three of her former dancers, Crystal Williams, Noelle Rodriguez, and Arianna Davis. They accused her of s*xual harassment and creating a hostile work environment. The lawsuit against Lizzo was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, as per NBC News.
The singer is a proud advocate for body positivity and women empowerment and the recent news left her fans shocked. According to the lawsuit shared by the plaintiffs' law firm, the accusers have also claimed that the singer put a huge amount of pressure on one of the members of the group to touch a completely nude performer, while at an Amsterdam club.
The lawsuit stated that the rapper and singer exposed the entire team to an "excruciating" audition right after she leveled untrue accusations that they had been drinking while at work.
Trigger Warning: This article contains mentions of abuse. Readers' discretion is advised.
The lawsuit filed on Tuesday has named Lizzo, her dance captain Shirlene Quigley, and her production company as defendants
The lawsuit filed by Crystal Williams, Noelle Rodriguez, and Arianna Davis accuses Lizzo of bringing unwanted attention to one of her dancers (Arianna Davis') weight after a performance at the prestigious SXSW or South by Southwest music festival.
In a statement, the plaintiffs' lawyer, Ron Zambrano said:
"The stunning nature of how Lizzo and her management team treated their performers seems to go against everything Lizzo stands for publicly, while privately she weight-shames her dancers and demeans them in ways that are not only illegal but absolutely demoralizing."
Later on, the dance choreographer and the singer herself called the dancer "less committed" to her work, which was a "thinly veiled" concern about the dancer's weight, as per the lawsuit.
According to NBC News, the lawsuit that has been filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court by Lizzo's three former dancers contains serious accusations against the dance captain of the team, Shirlene Quigley. Quigley allegedly proselytized several performers and rediculed those who had engaged in premarital s*xual acts.
The dance captain also allegedly shared lewd s*xual fantasies and discussed the virginity of one of the accusers publically. However, the suit does not state whether the American singer knew about these allegations against Quigley. The accusers strongly believe that the singer was aware of the team's complaints against the dance captain, as reported by Ron Zambrano, the plaintiffs' lawyer.
As per NBC News, apart from s*xual harassment and creating a hostile work environment, the lawsuit also includes accusations. These include racial and religious harassment, interference with prospective economic advantage, and falsified imprisonment, among others. It is important to note that not every claim has been brought against every defendant.
Davis and Crystal Williams were later reportedly fired by the singer. Later on, a third member of the group, Noelle Rodriguez, resigned from the singer's company as per NBC News. As of this writing, the singer's legal team and production company Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc. have not released a statement about the case.
