Lizzo has hit out at “racist” and “fatphobic” algorithms for “destroying the music industry” and hampering her album promotion.
The singer is preparing to release her third studio album ‘Bitch’ on June 5 (pre-order here) and so far she has shared the Meredith Brooks-sampling title track, as well as ‘Don’t Make Me Love U’.
On Tuesday (May 12), she posted a video to TikTok in which she outlined her problems with the way that changes in social media algorithms have made promoting the album more challenging.
“The algorithm-based way that social media functions now is destroying the music industry,” she explained. “If your algorithm is super serving you things out of order of when they’re happening, then the general public has no idea when music is actually coming out.”
“Back in the day, which was maybe even just five years ago, we used to get things chronologically,” she continued. “Music marketing relies heavily on social media, but now, ever since the algorithm has been showing us things out of order, there’s actually no way to successfully promote an album where everyone knows your album is coming.”
@lizzo Don’t get me started on how the algorithm is racist & fat phobic 😏
♬ original sound – lizzo
She said that even as an artist herself, the algorithm have left her unaware of new releases by other artists she admires.
“Where it bites me in the ass is I have a private page with over 280,000 people who follow me because they support me, because they love me. But even when I post on that page, I’m not hitting their algorithm,” she said.
The TikTok post was captioned: “Don’t get me started on how the algorithm is racist & fat phobic.”
‘Bitch’ will be Lizzo’s first record since 2022’s ‘Special’. NME’s four-star review said: “Perhaps inevitably, given Lizzo’s overwhelmingly positive message, ‘Special’ is sometimes a bit cheesy. Still, it’s cheesy in a way you won’t want to resist.” Critic Nick Levine then concluded: “Lizzo knows exactly who she is as an artist and what she wants to achieve: she’s the bad bitch with an incredible talent for making people feel good.”
Last month, the ‘Good As Hell’ singer revealed she vowed to remain a virgin until winning a Grammy, and then lost her virginity in 2020 when she won three. She also shared that she did not have her “first kiss” until she was 21.
Elsewhere, she has vowed to keep fighting the lawsuit brought against her by three former backup dancers, claiming “the truth is less salacious than the headlines”. She stands accused of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment, which she denies.
