'I'm not making music for White people': Lizzo claims she creates songs from her 'Black experience' for herself
DETROIT, MICHIGAN: Popular musician, Lizzo claimed in her recent interaction with Vanity Fair claimed the criticism that disturbs her the most is that she makes music for a white audience. She said, “That is probably the biggest criticism I’ve received, and it is such a critical conversation when it comes to Black artists."
The artist who recently locked horns with Kanye West also went on to play James Madison's 200-year-old crystal flute. She went on to say, "When Black people see a lot of white people in the audience, they think, Well this isn’t for me, this is for them. The thing is, when a Black artist reaches a certain level of popularity, it’s going to be a predominantly white crowd."
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She then went on to explain, "I was so startled when I watched [YouTube clips of gospel great] Sister Rosetta Tharpe, who was an innovator of rock and roll. She was like ‘I’m going to take gospel and shred guitar,’ and when they turned the camera around, it was a completely white audience." Further, she added, "Tina Turner, when she played arenas—white audience. This has happened to so many Black artists: Diana Ross, Whitney, Beyoncé.… Rap artists now, those audiences are overwhelmingly white."
Later, she claimed, "I am not making music for white people. I am a Black woman, I am making music from my Black experience, for me to heal myself [from] the experience we call life. If I can help other people, hell yeah." However, she also added, "Because we are the most marginalized and neglected people in this country. We need self-love and self-love anthems more than anybody."
The artist went on to say, "So am I making music for that girl right there who looks like me, who grew up in a city where she was underappreciated and picked on and made to feel unbeautiful? Yes. It blows my mind when people say I’m not making music from a Black perspective—how could I not do that as a Black artist?”
During the interaction, she also clapped back at her critics saying, criticism in the online world bothered her until she got into the “real world” and connected with Black women who told her that her music inspired them. The artist added, "She’s really good and her music is good, believe her.’ That is what I’m moving into now, and it’s a beautiful place to be. I finally feel I can relax and have a cocktail.”
Meanwhile, Lizzo played the 200-year-old flute owned by James Madison, the fourth president of America, who is called the 'Father of the Constitution'. His flute is also known as the 'Madison Flute' and was played during a concert held at the library Great Hall in Washington DC on Tuesday, September 27. She was also in the news as a feud occurred with Kanye West. Kanye called her the "genocide of the Black race." He also went on to claim in a Fox Interview with Tucker Carlson that whenever Lizzo posts on social media about dieting, "bots" and "media" attack her to spread the notion that being overweight "is the new goal," reported Daily Mail.
He said, "When Lizzo loses 10 pounds and announces it, the bots ... they attack her for losing weight. Because the media wants to put a perception that being overweight is the new goal, when it's actually unhealthy. Let's get aside the fact whether it's fashion or vogue, which it's not, or if someone thinks it's attractive, to each his own. It's actually clinically unhealthy. And for people to promote that, it's demonic." When asked why he thought this was a trend, Kanye West responded, "It's a genocide of the Black race," To which she responded gracefully through her performance in Toronto, "I'm minding my fat, Black, beautiful business." The audience cheered and applauded as Lizzo spoke up for herself without specifically mentioning Kanye.