Unless you’ve been living on a remote island with no internet connection, you’d be hard pressed never to have heard of Lizzo. She first broke into the music scene in 2016, having jammed with the likes of Prince, signed under Atlantic, and released a hit EP. It’s been a rapid climb since then, and now she’s one of the most revered artists of our generation.
Lately, she made waves with her recently released music video for “Cuz I Love You” — a timely Valentine’s Day drop. But if you’ve been keeping track of her career, Lizzo’s discography isn’t made up of sentimental ballads to past boyfriends. In fact, her favorite lover might just be herself.
Lizzo, born Melissa Jefferson, has made self-empowerment the center piece of her work. Perusing her catalog of songs, you’ll notice how the singer likes to celebrate diversity in all forms — from race and sexuality, to her body and beliefs.
“I made a commitment to feel-good music,” she told The New York Times. “I had to show my belly a lot of attention, a lot of love.”
As a plus-size woman of colour, even Lizzo’s distinct fashion sense feels like respite. She proves that style isn’t exclusive to size 2 models, no matter what the fashion world has dictated for so long. Combined with the rise of body positive brands, Lizzo’s success couldn’t be more timely. Inclusive retailer Woman Within preaches the very same message that full-figured women deserve to love what they wear too, instead of being treated like an afterthought by most companies who only cater to one standard frame. Similarly, Lizzo is making it known through her brand and art that these women no longer have to feel invisible.
Her message is as straightforward as it can get: love yourself and don’t let people bring you down. On “Scuse Me,” she sings about not needing a crown to know that she’s a queen. The track is actually an ode to sexual empowerment — one of the many topics she doesn’t shy away from despite the eyebrows she might raise.
While other black artists like Beyoncé proudly wear their activism on their sleeve, Lizzo insists she is not political. “My job is to emote and communicate and bop,” she expressed in an interview with The Guardian. That said, her message of positivity is a welcome break from Trump’s America.
