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Happy Birthday to the fiercely undeniable queen, Lizzo. We could run through an infinite list of why we love the Grammy-award-winning singer, from her daring style to her amazing vocals, but you’d probably be reading this article for a month-long. With three Grammys underneath her belt, two Soul Train Awards, and a slew of fans, the Rumors pop star has a lot to celebrate this year.
In 2019, Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson, broke into the scene with her hit single Truth Hurts that instantly propelled the flirty flutist to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for several consecutive weeks. The viral song won the Texas native her first Grammy for “Best Pop Solo” performance. Lizzo continued to skyrocket and she had no intentions of slowing down. Lizzo followed up her award-winning debut with her second single Good as Hell. Fans around the world resonated with the track’s catchy melody and powerful messages of self-love, beauty, and acceptance, something that Lizzo has become known for preaching in her music and through various initiatives After 3-years of hard work, tenacity, and grit, Lizzo is finally reveling in the fruits of her labor, and believe it not, she’s far from done.
“I deserve the spotlight,” the pop star told PEOPLE during an interview in March. “I deserve the attention. I’m talented, I’m young, I’m hot. You know? And I’ve worked hard.”
We know that’s right! Here’s 3 reasons why we absolutely love Lizzo.
She’s Unapologetic
Whether she’s stepping into a private jet with her bodacious backside on full display or twerking up a storm in a small bikini, Lizzo lets her fun and bold personality shine front and center. It’s incredibly admirable in a world where cancel culture and social media critics can make you think twice about what you share out in the world. Lizzo does her thing regardless of all the commentary from the peanut gallery and she looks “Good As Hell” doing it too.
“I made a decision to be myself because I knew I had no choice,” the singer told Essence in 2019. “Sometimes the label ‘unapologetic’ bothers me because it can be loaded because it means we have to apologize for something in the first place. I’m not ignorant to the fact that we had to have a demeanor of lowering ourselves culturally just to exist. But I’m trying to shake up the narrative about how we’re supposed to act.”
Lizzo Is An Advocate For Self-Love
Lizzo is a strong advocate for self-love and acceptance, even though her message hasn’t always been received by social media critics. As a plus-size queen, Lizzo shows off her curves on social media and in her music videos. It’s a blatant ” F-you” to the harmful beauty standards and tropes that continuously try to diminish our sense of self-worth and acceptance. The celeb constantly pours her body-positive ethos back into her fanbase.
In February, Lizzo appeared on Instagram completely naked, and while some raised a few eyebrows at the move, there was a deeper message behind the photo.
“If you love me… you love all of me. You don’t get to pick and choose. We should be unconditionally loving of one another, starting with being unconditionally loving to ourselves, “Lizzo shared in her caption.
“Take a moment today and think about the conditions we hold so tightly to that keep us from the freedom of true love. Do you really wanna be so tightly wound? Free yourself in love. You deserve it,” she added.
In April 2021, the Houston native aired out a few grievances she had with people weight-shaming big girls like herself.
“Bodies are not all designed to be slim with a six-pack,” she told fans in a TikTok video. “If you’re feeling down on yourself today, just remember that your body is your body. Nobody got your body. So enjoy that bitch.”
She’s Multifaceted
We’ve seen the superstar assume a number of roles during her meteoric rise. This month, Lizzo had fans doubled over with laughter during her guest appearance on Saturday Night Life. The multihyphenate recently dropped her body inclusive shapewear line Yitty and now, the singer turned bustling entrepreneur is taking the reality TV world by storm with the release of her Amazon Prime series Watch Out For The Big Grrrls.
Lizzo extends her body-positive ethos into the dance competition show that puts 10 lucky contestants through a series of dance challenges to see who has what it takes to join the Grammy-winning artist on tour as a background dancer. Big, bold, and confident are the only requirements needed to join the elite ranks of the “Big Grrrl” dance team, a premise that the star hopes will connect with fans who tune in.
“It was important that I changed the narrative of what a reality competition television show looks like,” Lizzo, who executive produced the series, explained during a panel at South By Southwest in Austin, back in March, according to NBC News.
“We don’t always have to be cruel,” she continued. “We can be kind, and we don’t have to pit people against each other. I feel like it’s hard enough in the dance world already for girls who look like me, so why would I create that environment in my space? If I have the power to change that, why not change that?”
Let the almightly Lizzo be the reason for you to shine on this glorious day because we know she’ll be doing a lot of it for her 34th rotation around the sun today and looks like we’ll be seeing a lot more of Lizzo now that she’s gearing up for a huge tour and a new album release too!
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