Lizzo - Big GRRRL Small World

oof

Lizzo releases a statement on the sexual harassment and hostile workplace allegations: pic.twitter.com/dho9sMfhnm

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) August 3, 2023

Some interesting wording choices in there.

It’s a better statement than “God is good, y’all” and that’s about all the leeway I’m willing to grant to all of these empty platitudes

I am very open with my sexuality and expressing myself but I cannot accept or allow people to use that openness to make me out to be something I am not.

huh

The part that also stood out to me was the "with passion comes hard work and high standards", but maybe I'm sensitive to it because men have been using that bullshit as a a free pass to be complete assholes in the working environment for decades.

Yeah that's a long-standing bullshit copout to be an abusive asshole. It IS true that as a performer, these high standards can lead to tense moments - people getting called out for not doing what they're supposed to, being frustrated after a long day. All that is fine and usually doesn't lead to blowups like these.

but you don't get to outright dehumanize people in the name of art, either. that shit's the main reason I hated Klobs as a Presidential candidate, she used that same bullshit excuse.

that shit's the main reason I hated Klobs as a Presidential candidate, she used that same bullshit excuse.

Maybe it's a Minnesota thing?

I am very open with my sexuality and expressing myself (i may ask you to eat a banana out of a stripper's vagina) but I cannot accept or allow people to use that openness to make me out to be something I am not (a bad person)

surprised she didn't say not eating a banana out of a stripper's vagina was a 'boundary' for her

lol j0rdan

Maybe it's a Minnesota thing?

― but also fuck you (unperson), Thursday, August 3, 2023 12:00 PM bookmarkflaglink

"Minnesota not-nice"?

The statement is fascinating b/c she says a lot without actually saying the allegations are untrue (except I guess the part where she says she "would absolutely never criticize or terminate an employee because of their weight")

"I am very open with my sexuality and expressing myself but I cannot accept or allow people to use that openness to make me out to be something I am not." Imagine if, like, Louis CK said this. (He probably did.)

Tbf she didn't fire them for being overweight, she allegedly told them to *lose* some weight. Totally different, right?

That's one of the worst rebuttal statements I've ever read, not that any of them are good

xo FWIW (and not withstanding anything he may have said or done later), I think Louis' apology statement at the time was a pretty good model for one.

"I've behaved like a vile piece of shit because I'm a fuck-up, I will now crawl into a hole and remove myself from the vicinity of the human race for a good long while" is the only rebuttal I ever want to hear from these people. Never seems to happen, funnily enough.

Iirc Louis undercut his apology by coming back and making light of his situation, plus, you know, the dead kids in Parkland. Edgy!

Yes, that's why I said "notwithstanding..." The guy unfortunately sucks, and maybe he didn't even write the statement himself, but it sure hit better notes than Lizzo's

hoo boy

Lizzo is being represented by Hollywood lawyer Marty Singer for her harassment and toxic workplace lawsuit.

Singer’s clientele ranges from a variety of stars, including Bill Cosby, Johnny Depp, Charlie Sheen, Chris Brown, Brett Ratner, and currently, Jonah Hill. pic.twitter.com/BGhkbIBLvd

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) August 3, 2023

there is nothing i take more seriously than the respect i deserve as the most important person in any room i walk into

that looks like a new fighting game character select screen

xpost - that is, uh, not a list of names i'd want to be publicly associated with here in the year of our lord 2023

he's been the lawyer for way more celebrities than just those of this particular ilk - but yeah, nagl

not defending Lizzo but if you cherrypick the clients of any fucking defence lawyer on earth, it's "nagl"

no one here made that list, calm down. of course it's cherry picked to make it look worse. still, the statement stands that, were i a celebrity, i would definitely not want to be publicly linked with those names in 2023.

do we need another nagl thread

point being that hiring a defence lawyer, any defence lawyer, will come with these kind of associations, there's no way around it

p sure the average defense lawyer doesn't provide concierge legal services to celebs

obviously tons of celebrities use lawyers like this and tons of celebrities do stuff like this, and certainly this lawyer is probably very good

the problem for Lizzo it's hard say oh well she's just doing what celebrities do when a huge part of her whole thing (I'd say equal to the music) is that she wasn't a typical celebrity, she was better, kinder, empowering, etc. that's a big part of how she presented herself and her appeal.

it's not like pre-Amber Heard, people were like you know who's the best, not at all sketchy dude in the world? Johnny Depp

i kinda sometimes find the "positive energy" qualities that are praised in a lot of celebrities to be at best neutral traits. sometimes there are displays of suffocating positivity that are a result of this weird symbiotic relationship fans have with celebs who love basking in adoration, and who feed off it. and anything that pierces the illusion or might make them feel disempowered from their status as the lord or lady of good vibes is going to cause them to reveal themselves.

It's really easy to not hire Bill Cosby's lawyer. just sayin.

OTM

marty singer has prob defended 75% of hollywood at this point

ultimately some tweets about how your lawyer defended cosby & johnny depp are a small tax to pay for an amazing lawyer

It's really easy to not hire Bill Cosby's lawyer. just sayin.

― Steely Duran (Ye Mad Puffin), Thursday, August 3, 2023 2:33 PM (nineteen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

i don't see how, if you're a celebrity being accused of sexual abuse, it's really easy not to hire the lawyer who got the most flagrant and heinous celebrity sexual abuser out of jail. seems like the obvious move

If you’re trying to stay out of jail, sure. If you’re trying to beat a civil suit and continue on with your lucrative career, scorched earth might not be the best option.

cosby's PR obviously beyond habilitation but in the depp case it seemed like the legal defence was successful at turning the media narrative in his favour too

to be fair, Lizzo and Depp's "brands" (I hate using this term but w/e) are a teeny bit different, also the latter has decades more of artistic goodwill/experience

singer isn't a trial lawyer he had nothing to do w/ the cosby trial and from what i can tell his involvement in the heard/depp trial was tangential, largely related to stuff he had done in the past representing depp (and heard when they were together) during various legal issues. he's attractive to celebrities bcuz he offers two services in one -- representation in civil litigation and being the kinda PR crisis manager who calls journalists up and threatens to sue them if they print a story in a certain way. he seems to be a very good litigator ... i'm more dubious that the crisis managing stuff is very effective tho i'm sure he's gotten stuff removed from stories on more than his fair share of occasions. perhaps his tactics will backfire on lizzo but i tend to think being associated w/ him won't effect her public image beyond the next 48 hours once the world moves onto another story, and if he gets the dancer suit dismissed or settled for little money it will prob be worth it for her

it is funny to think of her management team imploring her like "hire marty singer he's the best he's represented everyone in hollywood at some point" & then her waking up to a bunch of tweets being like "lizzo hires bill cosby and johnny depp's attorney"

lol

Murgatroid at 2:25 3 Aug 23

to be fair, Lizzo and Depp's "brands" (I hate using this term but w/e) are a teeny bit different, also the latter has decades more of artistic goodwill/experience

yes that's what I was saying

The Made in America festival in Philly was cancelled. Lizzo was the headliner.