Lizzo says she is ‘surprised’ by the lawsuit against her

Lizzo has opened up about the sexual harassment lawsuit filed against her last year.

The “Truth Hurts” singer was accused of harassment last August by three of her backup dancers, Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez, but the singer was dismissed from the case. His company, Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc., is still named in the lawsuit.

The dancers accused Lizzo of forcing them to touch naked performers and eat “bananas that were sticking out of the performers’ vaginas” at Bananenbar, a club in Amsterdam, while they were on tour.

According PEOPLELizzo spoke about the lawsuit during an episode of “Baby this is Keke Palmer” on Thursday. The “Boys” singer said she needed time to process the allegations.

Lizzo had just finished her “Beware the Big Grrrls.”” tour when she was “surprised” by the demand.

“I was literally living in my dream, and then the tour ended, and three former dancers blindsided me with a lawsuit,” she recalled, adding that she was “completely surprised.”

Lizzo also said she was “deeply hurt” by the opportunity she had given the dancers.

“I felt very hurt because they were three former dancers, so they weren’t on the tour. They didn’t finish the tour with us. But even despite that, these were people that I gave opportunities to,” he said.

Lizzo revealed that she didn’t even invite the dancers to Bananenbar and that the experience has made her have more boundaries when it comes to her employees.

“I’ve been wanting to get this off my chest,” she said, adding that she originally went to the club alone before others joined her. “I didn’t take them anywhere. They came to the club I was at and it wasn’t a mandatory invitation,” he said. “I didn’t even know those two particular dancers were coming, you. Only two of them came, even though all three of them said yes, it was only two and I didn’t even know they were coming.”

AccordingPEOPLELizzo was accused of encouraging dancers to catch dildos flying out of performers’ vaginas at Bananenbar. She was also accused of encouraging dancers to take turns “eating bananas that were sticking out of the performers’ vaginas.”

Lizzo went on to say that the evening was fun but “it was all consensual.”

Lizzo added that she had done “nothing wrong” and that she liked all three dancers before the lawsuit. She was particularly offended by the sexual harassment claim.

“They were people that I liked and I appreciated them as dancers, I respected them as dancers,” Lizzo said.

“So I thought, what? But then I heard all the other things like sexual harassment, and I thought, they’re trying well, I don’t know what they’re trying to do, but these are the kinds of things that the media can turn into something that’s not It’s… Let’s be clear, I didn’t do anything wrong.”

Lizzo denied the allegations on Instagram back in 2023, calling them “false.”

“These last few days have been tremendously difficult and overwhelmingly disappointing. My work ethic, my morals and my respect have been questioned,” he wrote.

The Grammy Award winner also said the allegations were “sensational.”

“My character has been criticized. I normally choose not to respond to false accusations, but they are as unbelievable as they seem and too scandalous not to address. These sensational stories come from former employees who have already publicly admitted that they were told their behavior during the tour “It was inappropriate and unprofessional.”

Lizzo was also sued in September 2023 by her former wardrobe stylist, Asha Daniels. Daniels claimed the “Rumors” singer harassed and intimidated herself, dancers and backup singers while on tour with the artist.

“I witnessed how myself, the dancers, the backup singers and my local team in each city were harassed and intimidated on a regular basis,” Daniels said.

“A judge saw this and, in the court of law, looked at the evidence and said, ‘Okay. We can’t let this go forward,'” Lizzo said, noting that she was dismissed from the lawsuit but filed complaints.

Daniels’ attorney, Ron Zambrano, noted that the lawsuit is still active and does not absolve the singer of wrongdoing.

“The lawsuit is still very active and has not been dismissed,” he said. “The ruling was not for lack of evidence, but rather for procedural jurisdictional reasons. It in no way absolves Lizzo of the egregious allegations that occurred during her tenure.”