Lizzo has always been viewed as a leader in the body positivity movement.
But that narrative may have changed for some of her longtime fans when she lost weight. In a new conversation with Andy Cohen for SiriusXM, the “Love in Real Life” singer explained why she still is a part of the body positivity conversation and that the phrase isn’t a euphemism for “fat.”
“The body positivity movement was very political and it got taken and kind of commercialized—and now body positivity to people is code word for fat,” Lizzo told Cohen.
“So they’re like, ‘Oh she’s not body positive anymore.’ I’m not fat anymore,” she continued. “But I’m still body positive because the body positive movement was actually created by a sub-group of people who were not put in the media, who were not praised, who were told we shouldn’t exist and we weren’t good enough because our bodies were bigger or disabled or even queer and trans people.”
"We were all a part of … the most recent wave like the 2016 era,” she added. “It was about me bucking against society telling me I shouldn’t exist, I shouldn’t wear leotards and I shouldn’t like how I look.”
At the top of the year, the 36-year-old reached her weight loss goal, revealing that her body mass index had decreased by over 10 points and she had lost 16 percent of her body fat. Allegations ran rampant that she had used Ozempic to help her lose weight, which she denied—and even joked about, dressing up as a tube of 'LizzOzempic’ for Halloween.
Last September, in a more real and vulnerable conversation with The New York Times, Lizzo said she’s learning to appreciate her figure.
"The idea of body positivity, it's moved away from the antiquated mainstream conception," she said. "It's evolved into body neutrality."
She continued, "I'm not going to lie and say I love my body every day. The bottom line is, the way you feel about your body changes every single day. There are some days I adore my body, and others when I don't feel completely positive."