Lizzo's former colleagues respond to sexual harassment allegations against star
Two individuals who are believed to have previously worked with Lizzo have seemingly weighed in on the allegations of weight-shaming and sexual harassment against her.
Chart star Lizzo has been hit with further accusations of creating a toxic work environment as more dancers and a director made damning allegations.
Just hours after the ‘Good as Hell’ singer’s former performers filed a US lawsuit against the star, others came forward with further claims.
Lizzo, real name Melissa Viviane Jefferson, was sued on Tuesday in a Los Angeles lawsuit brought by Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez.
Together they allege the singer fat-shamed and sexually harassed them while also accusing her of religious and racial harassment, discrimination, assault and false imprisonment.
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The performers, who are suing for damages, also claim Lizzo pressured one of them to touch a nude performer at an Amsterdam club.
Now a former dancer who claims she worked with Lizzo, Courtney Hollinquest, has spoken out on social media and confirmed that while she's not part of the lawsuit, she agrees with the things the star is accused of.
Lizzo has reportedly been accused of weight-shaming and sexual harassment in a lawsuit by three dancers (Getty Images)
Courtney Hollinquest, who's believed to have once worked with Lizzo, addressed the news on social media recently (Instagram/cquestt)"This was very much my experience in my time there. Big shoutout to the dancers who had the courage to bring this to light," she wrote.
Lizzo's former creative director, Quinn Wilson, agreed with Hollinquest. "I haven't been a part of that world for three years for a reason. I very much applaud the dancers' courage to bring this to light. And I grieve parts of my own experience. I'd appreciate space to understand my feelings," she wrote.
Filmmaker Sophia Nahli Allison also added her thoughts. She claimed to have been making a documentary of Lizzo in 2019 but had to walk away after two weeks. "I was treated with such disrespect by her," Allison claimed. "I witnessed how arrogant, self-centred, and unkind she is. I was not protected and was thrown into a s*** situation with little support. My spirit said to run as fast as you can and I'm so grateful I trusted my gut. I felt gaslit and was deeply hurt, but I've healed." Allison continued. "This kind of abuse of power happens far too often."
The lawsuit filed against Lizzo claims that, while on a concert trip to Amsterdam in February 2023, she invited her dancers for a night out which ended in the city’s red light district. It states that “things quickly got out of hand".
It added: "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 suit also claims Lizzo allegedly “pressured” and “goaded” Davis into touching one nude performer’s breasts. The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, names Lizzo, her production company and dance captain, Shirlene Quigley, as defendants.
Not all claims were brought against each defendant.
“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 demoralising,” the dancer’s lawyer Ron Zambrano said in a statement.
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Another apparent former colleague Quinn Whitney Wilson reacted to Courtney's post, with the latter subsequently responding to that (Instagram/cquestt)
Lizzo has been named as one of the defendants in a lawsuit said to have been filed this week (Dave J. Hogan/Getty Images)The suit accuses Lizzo of calling attention to the dancer’s weight after an appearance at South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival. The singer and her choreographer later told Davis, that she seemed “less committed” to her role - a comment the suit describes as a “thinly veiled” concern about Davis’ weight.
The lawsuit does not specify an amount for damages that cover emotional distress the dancers claim or the unpaid wages, loss of earnings and attorney’s fees they seek. Representatives for Lizzo have not responded to requests for comment.
Quigley, who is accused of attempting to convert dancers to Christianity, took to Instagram thanking God following the lawsuit being filed. The 39-year-old said: “Glory to God. I just want to remind you that heis love. Heis truth, he is the light. He is the first and the last
“All things work together for those that are called together according to his purpose.”
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