Beyonce Skips Over Lizzo’s Name During ‘Break My Soul’ Performance Following Sexual Harassment Lawsuit
Update 8/3/23 at 8:25 p.m. ET
Beyoncé’s mom, Tina Knowles, took to Instagram on Wednesday, August 2, to clap back at the accusations that her eldest daughter shaded Lizzo.
“She also didn't say her own sisters [Solange Knowles] name yal should really stop,” Tina — who filed for divorce from estranged husband Richard Lawson late last month — commented on The Shade Room’s coverage of the story.
Original story continues below:
Beyoncé appeared to make a statement at the Renaissance World Tour following the sexual harassment allegations against Lizzo.
During her Tuesday, August 1, performance in Boston, Beyoncé, 41, skipped over Lizzo’s name while performing the song “Break My Soul (The Queens Remix).” Though Lizzo’s name still appeared on the stage’s big screen along with the likes of Nina Simone, Kelly Rowland, Lauryn Hill and more Black female entertainers, Beyoncé sang over the lyric by repeating Erykah Badu’s last name four times.
“Beyoncé reiterating Badu and skipping Lizzo… that’s on hitting 2 birds with 1 stone,” a fan captioned a clip of the performance via X (formerly known as Twitter), referring to Badu’s recent comments that Beyoncé copied a signature black hat look of hers for the tour.
Lizzo, 35, previously shared a clip of her tearful reaction to hearing Beyoncé sing her name during one of the tour’s Poland performances. “In that moment I was thinking about baby me, listening to Happy Face by destiny’s child and crying myself to sleep because of bullies,” Lizzo captioned the June Instagram clip.
She continued: “I thought about Beyoncé jumping into the room where Tina Turner was waiting to meet her for the first time. I think of what we all mean to people and how cyclical it is. We are all so infinitesimally and maximally connected and significant. It’s an honor. Thank You @beyonce ??.”
Beyoncé made her subtle dig the same day Lizzo (real name Melissa Jefferson) was sued by three former dancers — Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez — for sexual harassment, religious harassment, disability discrimination, creating a hostile work environment and more. The suit also names Lizzo’s tour company, Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc. (BGBT), and dance captain Shirlene Quigley.
According to court documents obtained by Us Weekly on Tuesday, the dancers alleged that Quigley made several comments about Davis’ virginity and made the group “uncomfortable” by simulating “oral sex on a banana in front of the rest of the dance cast.”
While competing on the reality competition series Lizzo's Watch Out for the Big Grrrls, Davis and Williams claim they were required to participate in a nude photo shoot and feared they would be sent home if they refused. Lizzo also invited her dancers to an outing in Amsterdam’s Red Light District. The group felt “obligated” to attend due to fear of losing their jobs.
“While at Bananenbar, things quickly got out of hand. Lizzo began inviting cast members to take turns touching the nude performers, catching dildos launched from the performers’ vaginas, and eating bananas protruding from the performers’ vaginas,” the lawsuit states. “Lizzo then turned her attention to Ms. Davis and began pressuring Ms. Davis to touch the breasts of one of the nude women performing at the club.”
Other allegations include dancers not being allowed to work other jobs while on break from tour, Davis being fired after allegedly filming a dance team meeting and Lizzo acting “aggressively” toward Rodriguez after she confronted the singer about Davis and Williams’ firings.
“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,” attorney Ron Zambrano in a statement on Tuesday. Lizzo has yet to publicly address the lawsuit.
