Hip Hop Awards 2022: See How Lizzo is Making an Impact Outside of Music
Award-winning entertainer Lizzo added another trophy to her mantle when she snagged the “Impact Track” award for her single “About Damn Time” at the 2022 BET Hip Hop Awards. She faced several of the industry’s top competitors, including Fivio Foreign, Nas, Latto, Doja Cat, and Kendrick Lamar, who was nominated twice for his 2022 track “The Heart Part 5” and for his part in “Family Ties” with Baby Keem. However, the Lizzo effect proved to be too powerful. In honor of this year’s show, here are three ways the entertainer is making an impact outside of her music.
Pledges $500K to fight for abortion rights
Following the Supreme Court’s devastating ruling last June to overturn Roe vs. Wade, Lizzo announced on Twitter: “I’m pledging $500k from my upcoming tour to Planned Parenthood. Live Nation agreed to match— to make it 1 MILLION dollars.”
In addition to supporting Planned Parenthood, Lizzo has also donated to groups like the National Network of Abortion Funds, which helps people pay for necessary services like obtaining an abortion or traveling to a state where they can safely and legally get one.
Championing commonly known “nerdy” hobbies
In a vintage interview, Lizzo spoke candidly about her childhood and how she’d often get bullied because she showed an interest in books and school.
“I liked anime and comics, which just didn’t work in Houston, where everybody is black and listens to rap, '' she told reporters. “I was listening to Radiohead and classical music. I never stopped doing what I loved.”
Advocating for body positivity
Lizzo’s music and her brand have also been about women’s empowerment. The songwriter routinely champions self-love and body positivity, as heard in songs like “Juice,” “My Skin,” and “Lingerie.”
Earlier this year, she debuted her YITTY shapewear brand, founded on principles of self-love, radical inner confidence, inclusivity, and versatility.
