UNITED STATES: Lizzo, the pop star, is facing a lawsuit from three of her former dancers, alleging incidents of sexual harassment and a hostile work environment.
The case, which was filed on Tuesday, makes claims of racial, sexual, and religious discrimination, as well as assault and wrongful imprisonment.
Three former dancers—Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams, and Noelle Rodriguez—are the ones who filed the case.
The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles, claims that the dancers were forced to endure sexually denigrating behaviour and were pressured into participating in disturbing sex shows between 2021 and 2023.
Among the allegations against Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson, is that she allegedly pressured Davis to touch the breasts of a performer at a nightclub in Amsterdam. Davis reportedly resisted at first but eventually acquiesced, fearing it might affect her future on the team if she didn’t comply.
Lizzo, renowned for embracing her body and self-love, is facing accusations, along with dance choreographer Tanisha Scott, of weight-shaming Davis during a tour. In her lawsuit, Davis claims that the two asked whether she was “struggling with something as she seemed less committed to her role on the dance cast.”
According to the lawsuit, even though it was not directly mentioned, the questions “gave Davis the impression that she needed to explain her weight gain and disclose intimate personal details about her life in order to keep her job.”
The lawsuit also claims that Shirlene Quigley, the leader of the dancing team, imposed her Christian beliefs on participants and disparaged those who had extramarital affairs. Additionally, she is charged with discussing and publicizing on social media the virginity of one of the former dancers in public.
The management of the production business Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc., has also come under fire for allegations of racial discrimination.
The claim is that black members of the dance troop were “treated differently” from the rest of the team.
The lawsuit alleged that they were treated unfairly since other dancers weren’t accused of being “lazy, unprofessional, and having bad attitudes” and that these stereotypes are frequently used “to disparage and discourage” black women.
Additionally, the plaintiffs claim that while they were working on some of Lizzo’s European tours, she and the production firm team did not pay them adequately.
They contend that other performers received 50% of their weekly compensation money during the time they were not performing on the tour, while they received only 25%. They further contend that they were forbidden from working on other projects while on tour.
As per the lawsuit, Davis and Williams, two out of the three dancers, encountered Lizzo in March 2021 as they were getting ready to participate in the reality TV show “Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls.”
The third, Rodriguez, was chosen later in May 2021 to appear in Lizzo’s Rumours music video. She continued to be a part of the dance group, it adds.
Rodriguez eventually quit due to the alleged harassment of her fellow employees, while Davis and Williams were fired from the dance team.
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