Lizzo Faces New Lawsuit Alleging Toxic Workplace Environment
Category
✨
PeopleTranscript
00:00 Lizzo has been named in another lawsuit by a former employee.
00:06 On Thursday, fashion designer Aisha Daniels' lawyer filed a lawsuit accusing Lizzo and
00:11 several members on her team of allowing bullying, harassment and racial discrimination on her
00:16 tour, according to NBC News.
00:20 In the docs, which were obtained by NBC, Daniels claims Lizzo's wardrobe manager, Amanda Nomura,
00:25 reportedly referred to the performers as "fat, useless and dumb" and forced them to change
00:31 in front of white men on the crew who would "lewdly gawk at them."
00:37 Daniels was hired as a clothing designer and seamstress on Lizzo's tour earlier this year
00:41 and was reportedly fired after she complained about the wardrobe manager, according to the
00:46 lawsuit.
00:47 "I felt like I was living in a madhouse," Daniels told NBC News, adding, "I was listening
00:53 to this black woman on this huge stage have this message of self-love and caring for others
00:57 and being empathetic and being strong and standing up for others, and I was witnessing
01:02 myself, the dancers and the background vocalists and my local team in every city be harassed
01:07 and bullied regularly."
01:08 Lizzo, her tour manager and production company, Big Girl Big Touring, Inc. are also named
01:14 in the suit.
01:15 "Lizzo is the boss, so the buckle stops with her," Daniels' lawyer, Ronson Braino, said
01:21 in a statement obtained by NBC News.
01:25 Hours after the suit was filed, her team responded.
01:27 Stephen Friedman, a spokesperson for Lizzo, wrote in a statement to NBC News, quote, "As
01:32 Lizzo receives the humanitarian award tonight from the Black Music Action Coalition for
01:36 the incredible charitable work she has done to lift up all people, an ambulance-chasing
01:40 lawyer tries to sully this honor by recruiting someone to file a bogus, absurd publicity
01:45 stunt lawsuit who, wait for it, never actually met or even spoke with Lizzo.
01:51 We will pay this as much attention as it deserves.
01:54 None."
01:56 Lizzo is one of several musicians being honored at the 2023 Black Music Action Coalition Gala
02:00 on Thursday.
02:02 NBC News was unable to reach out to Nomura for comment.
02:07 This legal drama comes over a month after three of Lizzo's former dancers filed a lawsuit
02:12 against the singer that includes allegations of sexual harassment, creating a hostile work
02:17 environment and weight shaming.
02:19 Lizzo has since responded to that suit in a statement that says in part, quote, "As
02:24 an artist, I have always been very passionate about what I do.
02:28 I take my music and my performances seriously because at the end of the day, I only want
02:32 to put out the best art that represents me and my fans.
02:36 With passion comes hard work and high standards.
02:39 Sometimes I have to make hard decisions, but it's never my intention to make anyone feel
02:43 uncomfortable or like they aren't valued as an important part of the team."
02:48 The Grammy winner also denied weight shaming anyone, adding, quote, "I am not here to be
02:52 looked at as a victim, but I also know that I am not the villain that people and the media
02:57 have portrayed me to be these last few days.
03:00 I am very open with my sexuality and expressing myself, but I cannot accept or allow people
03:04 to use that openness to make me out to be something I am not.
03:08 There is nothing I take more seriously than the respect we deserve as women in the world.
03:12 I know what it feels like to be body shamed on a daily basis and would absolutely never
03:17 criticize or terminate an employee because of their weight."
03:22 AXIS Hollywood spoke to the three dancers who filed the suit against Lizzo last month,
03:26 a day before Lizzo released her statement, and they candidly told their side of the story.
03:32 "I've been feeling for a long time that they were having a problem with my weight gain.
03:37 She even says that dancers get fired for gaining weight."
03:40 "And you're saying, because you did accuse Lizzo of weight shaming you, so these are
03:46 the sorts of things that she's saying?"
03:47 "These are the sorts of things, and I want to be clear too that in order to weight shame
03:52 someone you don't necessarily have to be like, 'You're fat, you're going to get fired.'
03:56 It was much more of a nuanced thing, like, 'What's wrong with you?'
04:01 She would ask me, 'What's going on with you?
04:03 You seem different.
04:04 You're not like the same as you used to be.'
04:07 Are you ready?"
04:08 "Are you ready?"
04:09 "I'm scared."
04:10 The plaintiffs also claim that at an after-party at a strip club in Amsterdam's Red Light
04:13 District where sexually explicit acts were happening on stage, Lizzo pressured dancers
04:18 to touch the nude performers.
04:19 "I briefly touched the performer and um..."
04:22 "So did you feel pressured to touch against your will?"
04:25 "I absolutely felt pressured.
04:28 Absolutely.
04:30 I didn't want to be there.
04:31 I was there to, you know, be good enough for Lizzo."
04:34 "How did you feel mentally when you actually did that?"
04:38 "I think I went numb, to be honest.
04:42 I've never done anything like that in my life.
04:46 Sorry.
04:47 I just, it's crazy.
04:49 I've never done that."
04:51 "Explain to me the moment when you were fired, Mariam."
04:54 "Oh God.
04:55 When I was fired, she had, it was an ambush meeting, by the way, on our off day.
04:59 We were told to come in to do a measure, to get measurements for wardrobe."
05:04 "I was terminated in the hotel lobby and she wouldn't speak to me either.
05:11 I did request to speak to her, just to kind of get further clarity, because they did it
05:15 under the guise of budget cuts, but then was planning to bring another dancer in less than
05:22 24 hours later, so."
05:23 "So it felt like you were in fact replaced."
05:25 "Yeah, retaliated against her, yeah."
05:28 Rodriguez wasn't fired.
05:30 She later resigned over the alleged appalling behavior.
05:32 "What do you ladies hope to achieve in the end with this lawsuit?"
05:36 "It just feels very good to be a part of something that gave other women and artists,
05:43 I guess the outlet, or the strength to come forward and share their story as well."
05:49 [MUSIC]