Lizzo Wants To Knock Down Negative Stereotypes On Plus-Size Women

For many years now, Grammy Awardee Lizzo has been campaigning against stereotypes on plus-size women particularly those working in the entertainment industry. The 33-year-old “Truth Hurts” singer said she is seeing some improvement on representation and inclusivity in the media, in a recent conversation with Variety. However, there is a lot more that needs to be done to fight stigma against women who have the same body type as her, Lizzo said.

"It's not happening quickly by no means. It’s happening very slow and select, and there’s a long way to go. But I have seen it budge, and that’s better than nothing,” she said.

Growing up, she said there was very little diversity on television. “The choice of Black girls they used in media was the same kind of Black girl,” the “Good As Hell” singer said referring to the usual slim figures of celebrities.

Lizzo also recalled the weight criticisms that were thrown at Jessica Simpson when she was a young star. She told Variety, “Y’all want me to believe this is an overweight, obese woman and that she should be ashamed of how she feels — how the f*** was I supposed to feel?”

The self-love advocate, who is the executive producer of Amazon’s new reality TV series, "Watch out for the Big Grrrls," said it was challenging to find participants for the show because of the way agents think about girls with bigger physique.

“We’re not getting agents because we’re not getting jobs. We’re not getting jobs because we don’t have agents. Y’all are just pingponging. A lot of girls who dance with me got agents after they started working with me because they were generating a viable stream of income. I’m grateful for that, but it’s still ridiculous. These girls should be getting representation ASAP. Hopefully this show helps that,” she told the outlet.

Lizzo also noted that the plus-size population is being “devalued” specifically in Hollywood. She said many people assume that people in bigger bodies cannot perform the way slim performers do.

“I don’t think they’re doing it maliciously. I definitely think they’re conditioned to believe that bigger bodies don’t have enough stamina to perform at the level that I do,” she explained.