Lizzo is a hip-hop pop star who has made headlines consistently over the past few years thanks to her catchy songs and relatable lyrics.
Music artist Lizzo in a wedding gown at the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum on August 27, 2017, in Inglewood, California (Credit: FayesVision / WENN)
She has won countless awards, and her music has been featured in numerous movies and television shows while maintaining a strong public image and speaking out about body positivity and mental health.
The Origin of Lizzo’s Stage Name: A Unique Transformation
Though Lizzo is a catchy stage name, it is no surprise that Lizzo isn’t her real name.
Singers Lizzo and Brooke Candy attend the Adam Selman fashion show during New York Fashion Week at Gallery 2, Skylight Clarkson Sq on September 7, 2017, in New York City (Credit: IZZY / WENN)
Lizzo’s full government name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson. So, how did she get Lizzo from Melissa?
When Lizzo was fourteen years old, she was in a rap group called the Cornrow Clique with two friends. The naming convention within the group involved shortening each member’s name and adding an “o” at the end. At the time, she wanted her stage name to be Lissa which would’ve just been a short version of her real name Melissa.
However, the popularity of Jay-Z’s song “Izzo” at the time inspired her to adopt the name Lizzo, a moniker she has retained ever since. She discussed her nickname in an interview with Radio Milwaukee:
Lizzo is my nickname. It came from Houston, in middle school. I was in my first rap crew, Cornrow Clique. Everybody in my crew would take their name, shorten it, and put an “o” at the end. Mine was “Lizzo” and it kind of stuck with me and I brought it with me. It made me feel way more comfortable.
Jay-Z’s song “Izzo” inspired Melissa Viviane Jefferson to change her name to Lizzo (Credit: WENN)
The Making of a Star: Lizzo’s Early Years and Musical Journey
Melissa Jefferson, or Lizzo, was born in Detroit, Michigan, on April 27, 1988. She was born into a very religious family and credits much of her love of music to the gospel music frequently played around the house.
Lizzo is a classically trained flutist and didn’t start rapping until she was in high school.
Lizzo is a classically trained flutist and started playing flute in intermediate school (Credit: Roger Wong / INSTARimages)
Her family moved to Houston Texas when she was ten and her love of music was apparent at an extremely young age.
She went to the University of Houston to continue pursuing classical music studies, but her father passed away when she was only 21 years old.
This tragedy was a turning point in the artist’s life and prompted a year of living in her car while trying fearlessly to break into the music industry.
The Breakthrough: How “Truth Hurts” Catapulted Lizzo to Fame
Lizzo’s single “Truth Hurts” was used in the 2019 movie Someone Great, and though the movie came out over two years after the song was released, it became practically an overnight hit!
Lizzo performs in a hot pink catsuit with lace-up cutouts at 2021 Global Citizen Live: New York on September 25, 2021, in New York City (Credit: Janet Mayer / Startraksphoto)
Everyone was captivated by the fun and relatable vibe that Lizzo put out, and this was truly the turning point for her career.
“Truth Hurts” went on to top the US Billboard Hot 100, which paved the way for her earlier released single “Good as Hell” to reach the top three on the Hot 100!
Lizzo has been nominated for 13 Grammy Awards throughout her career. While she has received numerous nominations, she has won 4 Grammy Awards.
Lizzo, in a custom Mary Katrantzou geometric dress, posing with Anthony Anderson at the 51st NAACP Image Awards on February 22, 2020, in Pasadena, California (Credit: Sara De Boer / Startraksphoto)
She won the title of Time’s “Entertainer of the Year” in 2019. Lizzo has also won two Soul Train Music Awards, a BET Award, and a Billboard Music Award.
Championing Body Positivity: Lizzo’s Fight for Inclusivity
Lizzo has inspired women worldwide to learn how to be comfortable in their bodies.
She has been the recipient of a lot of online bullying due to body shamers, which has caused her to take a hiatus from social media platforms a few times, as she has always been adamant about taking care of her mental health.
Lizzo wears a white Atelier Versace gown with Lorraine Schwartz jewelry and René Caovilla ‘Cleo’ sandals at the 62nd Annual GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on January 26, 2020, in Los Angeles, California (Credit: Startraksphoto)
Despite this, Lizzo has remained a positive light for plus-size women and has paved the way for many in a world that has never been kind to women who don’t fit a certain body standard.
Lizzo Shines in Moschino at the 2019 MTV VMAs: A Red Carpet Triumph
Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Viviane Jefferson, embraced her plus-size curves on the red carpet at the 2019 MTV VMAs at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
The then-31-year-old “Truth Hurts” singer posed for pictures in a custom red strapless Moschino by Jeremy Scott sequin gown with silver ‘Siren’ lettering and matching red and metallic feather boa.
Lizzo was not afraid to show off her curves at the 2019 MTV VMAs at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on August 26, 2019 (Credit: WENN / Avalon / Ivan Nikolov)
Styled by fashion stylist Mark Monroe, she completed her sexy look with Stuart Weitzman’s popular Nudist sandals.
Lizzo rocked a red and metallic feather boa with a custom Moschino dress (Credit: WENN / Avalon / Ivan Nikolov)
Empowerment on and off Stage: Lizzo’s VMAs Performance
In addition to performing her smash hit “Truth Hurts” and “Good As Hell” during the live show, she was nominated for Best New Artist and Push Artist of the Year. Her song “Tempo” was nominated for Best Power Anthem and “Truth Hurts” for Song of Summer.
“I’m tired of the bullsh*t and I don’t have to know your story to know that you’re tired of the bulls*t, too,” Lizzo told the audience in a short motivational speech between the songs she performed during the show.
“It’s so hard loving yourself in a world that doesn’t love you back. Am I right? So I want to take this opportunity right now to just feel good as hell because you deserve to feel good as hell!”
Lizzo later gave a rousing self-empowerment speech during her performance (Credit: WENN / Avalon / Ivan Nikolov)