Lizzo changes lyrics to new song 'Grrrls' after backlash over 'ableist slur'
"Let me make one thing clear: I never want to promote derogatory language."
Fans spoke and Lizzo listened.
The "Truth Hurts" singer has updated and released a new version of her song "Grrrls" after receiving backlash over a lyric in the original version that fans said was considered an "ableist slur."
"It’s been brought to my attention that there is a harmful word in my new song 'GRRRLS,'" Lizzo wrote in a statement shared to social media on Monday.
"Let me make one thing clear: I never want to promote derogatory language," she continued. "As a fat Black woman in America, I’ve had many hurtful words used against me, so I understand the power words can have (whether intentionally, or in my case, unintentionally)."
Lizzo first released "Grrrls," the promotional single from her forthcoming album "Special," on Friday, June 10. The song's original lyrics included the line, "Hold my bag, b****, hold my bag / Do you see this s***? I'm a spaz."
Following the track's release, users took to Twitter to call out the song's use of the term "spaz," calling it an "ableist slur."
"Hey @lizzo my disability Cerebral Palsy is literally classified as Spastic Diplegia (where spasticity refers to unending painful tightness in my legs) your new song makes me pretty angry + sad," one user wrote on Twitter following the song's initial release. "'Spaz’ doesn’t mean freaked out or crazy. It’s an ableist slur. It’s 2022. Do better."
The term "spaz" is an offensive derivation of the word "spastic," or spasticity. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke at the National Institute of Health, spasticity is "a condition in which there is an abnormal increase in muscle tone or stiffness of muscle, which might interfere with movement, speech, or be associated with discomfort or pain," and is "usually caused by damage to nerve pathways within the brain or spinal cord that control muscle movement."
Spasticity may be associated with a number of conditions or diseases, including multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, or Krabbe disease.
The "Grrrls" lyrics have since been updated to read, "Hold my bag, b****, hold my bag / Do you see this s***? Hold me back."
"I'm proud to say there's a new version of 'Grrrls' with a lyric change," Lizzo wrote in her statement on Monday, debuting the change. "This is the result of me listening and taking action."
"As an influential artist, I'm dedicated to being part of the change I've been waiting to see in the world," she added, signing the statement, "Xoxo, Lizzo."
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