Lizzo gives ICONIC speech empowering women as she picks up People's Champion award 🏆
She brought 17 activists on stage with her
Last updated 8th Dec 2022
Congratulations are in order for Lizzo, who picked up the People's Choice Award for the People's Champion this week, and brought 17 activists on stage with her.
The '2 Be Loved' singer accepted the prestigious award, presented to her by her mum, Shari Johnson-Jefferson, before saying: "My mama ya'll! Umm, OK, so I'm going to be honest, when I first heard about this award I was on the fence about whether I should accept because, if I'm the People's Champ, I don't know a trophy for championing people. You know what I'm saying?
"I'm here tonight because, to be an icon isn't about how long you've had your platform, being an icon is about what you DO with that platform, and ever since the beginning of my career I've used my platform to amplify marginalised voices, so, tonight I'm sharing this honour, make some noise for the people ya'll!"
She then went on to introduce 17 activists who she thinks deserve the spotlight.
The activists Lizzo brought on stage included 15-year-old Mari Copeny, better-known as Little Miss Flint, who has been campaigning for everyone in Flint to get fresh water, and Chandi Moore who works as a community health educator at a children's hospital in Los Angeles.
Watch Lizzo's full speech below:
Following her speech, Lizzo has received a lot of praise from other artists and fans alike. Singer Sza wrote: 'My actual hero'.
Meanwhile many fans wrote messages to Lizzo, one said: 'AN HONOR. & with the most amazing women. The world is lucky to have you 🤍🤍 ', with other commenting: 'his is why you are iconic. Keep lifting women and women’s rights.'
Lizzo looked iconic on the night wearing an Alexander McQueen gown to accept her prestigious award.
You can hear songs by Lizzo on Hits Radio.
Now take a look through Lizzo's amazing career below:
Early life and studying
After studying classical music at the University of Houston, Lizzo lived out of her car for a year following her father's death to break into the music industry. She moved to Minneapolis in 2011, performing with various indie bands including Lizzo & the Larva Ink.
2012: Chalice
Lizzo also performed as part of a three-piece band the Chalice, releasing an album in 2012. She released her solo debut album, 'Lizzobangers', in 2013, and it was re-released on Virgin Records a year later.
2013: Supporting Har Mar Superstar
She toured as a support act for Har Mar Superstar in 2013, and also sang with his band. Lizzo worked on a body positivity campaign What's Underneath for StyleLikeU in 2014, writing the song 'My Skin' after being inspired by the project.
2014: Working with Prince
Collaborating with pop icon Prince in 2014 on his album Plectrumelectrum, Lizzo called it "surreal... almost like a fairytale" and that it was "something I will never actually get over." Her second studio album 'Big Grrrl Small World' was released in 2015, and she briefly became a host for MTV.
2016: Signing with Atlantic Records
Lizzo signed with Atlantic Records in 2016, and put out EP 'Coconut Oil' that same year, which featured 'Good As Hell', and received huge critical acclaim - with many praising Lizzo for her inspirational lyrics about self-love and self-acceptance.
2017: 'Good As Hell Tour'
She went on the 'Good As Hell Tour' in 2017, and also appeared as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race. The following year, she toured with the likes of Haim and Florence and The Machine.
2018: Body positivity campaigns
2018 was a big year for Lizzo in different ways - she became a hugely influential figure regarding body positivity, featuring in campaigns and on the covers of magazines. She released her third album 'Cuz I Love You' in January 2019, spawning singles 'Juice' and Tempo featuring Missy Elliott. She then performed at Coachella Festival.
2019: Acting in Hustlers
Lizzo starred in Hustlers alongside the likes of JLo, Cardi B, Julia Stiles and Keke Palmer in 2019, which was based on a 2015 article in New York magazine by Jessica Pressler called 'The Hustlers at Scores'. She also lent her voice to animated film UglyDolls with Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas and Pitbull among others.
2019: Glastonbury slot
In 2019, she performed at Glastonbury Festival, and released a remix of 'Good As Hell' featuring Ariana Grande.
2020: BET Awards
Lizzo was nominated in a whopping four categories at the 2020 BET Awards! She was in the running for Best Female Hip Hop Artist, Album of the Year for 'Cuz I Love You', the BET HER Award for her song 'Tempo' featuring Missy Elliott and Best Female R&B/Pop Artist - which she won at the ceremony on 28th June 2020.
2020: BRIT Awards
Lizzo gave an incredible medley performance at the BRIT Awards 2020, singing three of her biggest hits so far - 'Truth Hurts', before sliding into a wonderful rendition of 'Good As Hell' and finishing off with the fan-favourite 'Juice'.
2021: 'Rumors'
Lizzo took to Instagram in August 2021 to announce that she was set to release a brand new single 'Rumors' on 13th August! Obviously, fans went wild for the new pic, commenting with excitement in their droves.
2022: Lizzo releases a series on Amazon Prime
Lizzo's new TV series on Amazon Prime was released in 2022. The series called Lizzo's Watch Out For The Big Grrrls follows the singer in a search for the next Big Grrrl dancers as she heads on her 2022 tour.
2022: Lizzo releases 'Special'
Lizzo released her album 'Special' in July 2022. Lizzo told James Corden the album took "three freaking years" to finish, but "I feel amazing."
2022: Lizzo releases 'Special'
Lizzo released her album 'Special' in July 2022. Lizzo told James Corden the album took "three freaking years" to finish, but "I feel amazing." The record contains huge hits like 'About Damn Time', 'Grrrls' and '2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)'.
2022: Lizzo wins her first Emmy Award
In September, Lizzo picked up her first Emmy Award for her Prime Video show Watch Out For The Big Grrrls. In her acceptance speech she touched on the representation in her show and said: "When I was a little girl, all I wanted to see was me in the media."
2022: Lizzo announces UK tour dates for 'The Special Tour'
Lizzo announced in October 2022 that she would be bringing her 'The Special Tour' over to the UK, performing in cities Glasgow, Birmingham, Manchester and London.
2022: Lizzo wins the People's Champion award
Lizzo gave an empowering speech as she collected a People's Choice Award for the People's Champion. The singer brought out 17 activists with her on stage saying: "To be an icon isn't about how long you've had your platform, being an icon is about what you DO with that platform."
2023: Record of the Year at the Grammys 2023
It really was 'About Damn Time'! Lizzo took home Record of the Year at the 2023 Grammys for the track which has no doubt been on pretty much everyone's party playlist all year. Winning over her icons Adele and Beyoncé, Lizzo mentioned them both in her acceptance speech, gushing over how Bey had actually inspired her to become a performer. N'aww!
2023: BRIT Awards 2023 performance
Although Lizzo didn't win either of the two categories she was nominated for at the BRIT Awards 2023 - missing out to Beyoncé both times - she gave a powerhouse performance! Doing a medley of 'Special', '2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)' and 'About Damn Time', she absolutely SLAYED the stage! Watch it on YouTube.
2023: Lizzo announced to appear in The Simpsons
Lizzo will appear in the season 34 finale of The Simpsons. The singer, and her infamous flute will appear in the episode called Homer's Adventure Through the Windshield Glass.
2023: Lizzo performs at Glastonbury
In June 2023, Lizzo performed on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival, wowing the crowd with a set packed with her biggest hits.
2024: Lizzo clears up confusion after 'I quit' statement
At the end of March 2024, Lizzo shared a statement on Instagram telling her fans that she 'quits', however it wasn't clear at the time if she meant quitting the music industry, or social media.
Just a few days later, Lizzo shared a video of herself on social media, confirming she is NOT quitting music, but 'negative energy'.
Now read:
A timeline of Lizzo's incredible rise to fame ✨
Lizzo announces FIVE UK dates for her 'Special' tour