Lizzo album flop after $86m tour shows cultural economy of public shaming
After a highly profitable world tour, singer Lizzo's latest album failed to chart, a commercial collapse she links to a broader societal shift towards public cruelty.
Lizzo has released her first album since facing severe workplace allegations, but the commercial reception marks a stark reversal from her recent financial highs.
Her new record, Bitch, failed to reach the top 100 in either the US or Britain. This contrasts sharply with her previous two albums, which each sold more than a million units. It also follows a lucrative 10-month world tour that ended on 30 July 2023. That run grossed $86.3m from 853,000 tickets across 80 shows in North America, Europe, Oceania and Asia.
The sudden commercial downturn follows intense mainstream and social media scrutiny. It began when three former dancers accused her of sexual harassment, a hostile work environment, and discrimination just two days after the tour concluded. While a judge ruled in December that the fat-shaming allegation lacked the merit to proceed to a civil trial, Lizzo has insisted there is no substance to the remaining claims and refused to settle out of court.
The trajectory of her career highlights the fragile economics of modern celebrity, where public perception can rapidly erode established commercial value. In a recent interview, Lizzo argued her struggles reflect a broader societal shift. "We’re in a business of hurting each other," she said. "The pendulum has swung in the opposite direction. Being cruel is trendy and acceptable. We’re seeing cruelty at an all-time high."
Lizzo attributes the poor performance of Bitch to reviewers evaluating her through the lens of the scandal rather than the music. "You get to a level of fame and celebrity when your fame overshadows your art," she said. "People care more about what I said than what I made."
The intense scrutiny has exacted a heavy personal toll. In a Substack essay last year, Lizzo confirmed she became "deeply suicidal" and temporarily "cut off her loved ones." She maintains that her new album is a direct response to her current environment.
However, she pushes back against critics attempting to map the legal allegations onto the record's lyrics. She notes that much of the album's theme of betrayal actually stems from a private friendship breakdown. "Most of the sad songs on this album are about a friendship breakup that was not public at all," she said. "That song is about a friend who I was very close with and I employed them and believed in them and they were extremely abusive and lied about me."
