Lizzo: More complaints about singer being investigated in wake of lawsuit

Published

10 months ago

August 9, 2023

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More complaints into Lizzo’s behaviour are being investigated by lawyers representing her accusers.

Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez, along with a third dancer, Arianna Davis, have filed a lawsuit against the Grammy-winning musician and her production company, Big Grrrl Big Touring (BGBT), which also includes claims of religious harassment, disability discrimination, assault, and false imprisonment.

Speaking to NBC News, Ron Zambrano said his firm is now looking at fresh allegations from six people who say they toured with Lizzo, as well as others who worked on her TV show Lizzo’s Watch Out For The Big Grrrls.

Mr Zambrano said the allegations are of a “sexually charged environment”, and failure to pay staff, adding some of the claims are potentially actionable.

After news of the lawsuit emerged, Lizzo issued a statement on social media saying she was “not the villain”. The singer, who is known for championing body positivity, described the allegations as “unbelievable” and “too outrageous to not be addressed”.

In response, Ms Williams told Sky News: “Her statement is just confirming the pattern of every time somebody speaks up or advocates for themselves, like we’re doing now, we get victim-blamed, we get gaslighted. And she likes to point the finger instead of addressing the issues that are being brought up.”

This is something that happens on an “everyday basis” when working with stars, she said. “Sadly, we’ve already experienced not only dancers that have worked with her directly, but dancers that are just in the entertainment industry in general, they’ve already come out and they’ve shared their stories.

“They feel brave enough to share their experiences… before people were just silent about it, they didn’t feel comfortable enough. They didn’t feel protected enough to call these artists out, to call these management teams out, and let them know, ‘hey, what you’re doing is wrong’.”

Lizzo is a four-time Grammy winner who was named Time’s entertainer of the year in 2019. She is best known for hits including Truth Hurts, Juice, Good As Hell and About Damn Time.

Ms Davis and Ms Williams began dancing with the star after competing on her Amazon reality show Watch Out For The Big Grrrls in 2021, but were both later fired. Ms Rodriguez was hired in the same year after performing in the video for the song Rumours, but resigned earlier this year over the “appalling behaviour”.

‘Lizzo doesn’t understand’

Ms Rodriguez compared working for Lizzo to dancing for the likes of Beyoncé and Lady Gaga, saying elsewhere this week: “I mean, working with Beyoncé, you have to be on your P’s and Q’s. Same thing with someone like Janet [Jackson] or Lady Gaga.

“But what they did differently and what Lizzo’s not understanding as a businesswoman, is that you can still have this expectation, this level of talent and energy that you want around you, but still show appreciation to your workers.

“There’s a really good balance of that, and I just don’t understand, the more you show that appreciation to your workers and that you care for them and everything that they’re doing for you as they are for you as well, the harder they want to work for you.

“I think that’s the biggest difference that she doesn’t quite understand yet.”

In her statement responding to the women’s lawsuit, Lizzo said: “Usually I choose not to respond to false allegations, but these are as unbelievable as they sound and too outrageous to not be addressed.”

She added: “I am not here to be looked at as a victim, but I also know that I am not the villain that people and the media have portrayed me to be these last few days.”

Sky News has contacted Lizzo’s representatives for comment.

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Morgan Spurlock: Super Size Me documentary maker, who ate only McDonald’s for a month, dies aged 53

Published

9 hours ago

May 24, 2024

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Morgan Spurlock: Super Size Me documentary maker, who ate only McDonald's for a month, dies aged 53

Documentary maker Morgan Spurlock, who famously ate only at McDonald’s for a month in Super Size Me, has died.

Spurlock died from complications of cancer at the age of 53 in New York, his family confirmed in a statement.

Craig Spurlock, the filmmaker’s brother, said: “Morgan gave so much through his art, ideas, and generosity.

“The world has lost a true creative genius and a special man. I am so proud to have worked together with him.”

Born on 7 November 1970, Spurlock started off his career as a playwright before creating I Bet You Will – an internet series where members of the public would take part in stunts for cash.

The 2002 webcasts, which saw some dared to eat a full jar of mayonnaise for $235 or take a shot of cod liver oil, were eventually bought by MTV.

Spurlock rose to fame with his 2004 documentary Super Size Me, where he exclusively ate at McDonald’s for 30 days to investigate the rise of obesity in the US.

He ate an average of 5,000 calories a day, always took a “super-size” meal if offered and exercised less to match the average American’s physical activity at the time.

By the end of his experiment, he claimed he put on 25lbs (11.3kg) and started suffering from depression and liver dysfunction.

Spurlock’s documentary grossed $22million in the global box office and was nominated for an Oscar.

It also prompted McDonald’s to stop offering its “super-size” option in 2004.

However the film’s findings were called into question as Spurlock refused to share his meal logs. He also later admitted to alcohol abuse in 2017, which other documentary makers said explained his liver issues and poor mental health.

In 2019, Spurlock released his second expose against the fast-food industry with Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!

The documentary sees him open his own restaurant and “become part of the problem” while tackling claims of healthy meals at big chain restaurants.

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Scottie Scheffler arrest officer disciplined for not having bodycam turned on

Published

13 hours ago

May 24, 2024

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Scottie Scheffler arrest officer disciplined for not having bodycam turned on

A police officer who arrested world number one golfer Scottie Scheffler has been disciplined for not having his bodycam on during the incident.

Scheffler was dramatically detained ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship last Friday in Louisville, Kentucky, after he reportedly tried to drive around a traffic jam outside Valhalla golf club caused by a fatal accident.

The 27-year-old later said he was “rattled” by the experience, which saw him charged and a police mugshot released of him wearing an orange jail-issue jumpsuit.

Louisville Detective Bryan Gillis has now been subject to “corrective action” for failing to activate his body-worn camera during the pre-dawn encounter in which he claimed he was “dragged/knocked down by the driver”.

Police have already released a video from a street camera that appears to show Scheffler’s car turning into the golf club entrance, prompting an officer to run toward the vehicle and apparently strike it as it comes to a stop.

The camera is too far away to capture the full details of the incident.

Another video released by authorities from a police vehicle dashcam shows Scheffler in handcuffs as he is taken away by officers.

Scheffler was arrested on charges that he injured Gillis and disobeyed commands, but the golfer said “he never intended to disregard any of the instructions” and that the incident was caused by a “big misunderstanding”.

Scheffler’s attorney Steve Romines has said his client was not at fault.

“Our position is the same as it was last Friday, Scottie Scheffler didn’t do anything wrong, we’re not interested in settling the case,” Mr Romines said.

“We’ll either try it or it will be dismissed.”

The city’s police chief pointed out officers are expected to maintain their body-worn cameras in a “constant state of operational readiness”.

Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel, head of the Louisville Metro Police Department, said: “Detective Gillis should have turned on his body-worn camera but did not.

“His failure to do so is a violation of LMPD policy on uniforms and equipment.”

An internal investigation report said Detective Gillis should have at least had his camera on in standby mode while directing traffic before the incident with Scheffler.

Chief Gwinn-Villaroel said the officer had “received corrective action” for the breach.

He had to complete a “failure to record” form as required by policy, was “counselled by a member of his command” and a “performance observation” was completed.

Detective Gillis had said he was requested to respond to a fatal accident at Valhalla when he saw Scheffler’s vehicle “travelling in the opposing lanes coming at me.”

Gillis, who approached Scheffler’s car on foot, wrote in an arrest report that the driver “refused to comply and accelerated forward, dragging” him to the ground.

He said his uniform trousers were damaged in the fall and he was taken to the hospital for his injuries.

Just hours later, after being carted off in handcuffs and a spell in jail, Scheffler returned to the golf course and eventually finished the tournament tied in eighth place on Sunday, which was enough to secure prize money of about $520,000 (£409,000).

He is due to return to Louisville on 3 June to face four charges, including second-degree felony assault of a police officer.

Louisville police’s current body camera policy was introduced following controversy in 2020 after officers shot Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman who was killed during a botched drug raid.

At the time, the plain-clothes officers who served the warrant and fired at Taylor were not required to wear body cameras.

The new policy required all officers to turn on the camera “prior to engaging in all law enforcement activities and encounters.”

The police chief at the time of Taylor’s death was later fired when officers at the scene of another fatal shooting failed to turn on their body-worn cameras.

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Sean Kingston’s home raided ‘over $150,000 TV payment’ – as his mother arrested

Published

15 hours ago

May 24, 2024

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Sean Kingston's home raided 'over 0,000 TV payment' - as his mother arrested

A SWAT team has raided the rented Florida mansion of singer Sean Kingston and arrested his mother on fraud and theft linked to the installation of a gigantic TV.

Detectives detained his mother, Janice Turner, 61, at the property in a Fort Lauderdale suburb, popular with celebrities and professional athletes, including Dwayne Johnson and Miami Dolphins star Tyreek Hill, on Thursday.

The sheriff’s office said the investigation is ongoing and declined to release specific details about the charges against Turner or whether her 34-year-old son is also being sought.

Local media reported Kingston was out of town and was not present during the raid, in which items were removed and loaded into a van by the authorities.

The Jamaican-American performer is best known for his 2007 single Beautiful Girls, Fire Burning and his collaboration with Justin Bieber on Eenie Meenie.

Federal court records show his mother pleaded guilty in 2006 to bank fraud for stealing more than $160,000 (£126,088) and served nearly a year and a half in prison.

Kingston wrote in an Instagram post on Thursday, which was later removed: “People love negative energy!

“I am good, and so is my mother!… My lawyers are handling everything as we speak.”

Robert Rosenblatt, a lawyer representing the rapper and his mother, told the South Florida Sun Sentinel: “These are fine people, and I’d be surprised if the allegations were true.”

Florida Department of Corrections records show Kingston is on two-year probation for trafficking stolen property.

‘Promise of commercials with Justin Bieber’

Lawyer Dennis Card, who was present at the arrest, said it is partly related to a lawsuit he filed against Kingston in February, accusing him of defrauding a Florida company that installed a 232-inch television.

In the case, Ver Ver Entertainment says Kingston contacted the company in September about buying the television, sold under the brand name Colossal TV, and having it installed at his home. The system costs $150,000 (£118,000).

Kingston allegedly told the owners that if they agreed to a lower down payment and gave him credit, he and Bieber would do commercials for them.

In November, Kingston paid the company $30,000 (£23,631) and the TV was installed, according to the lawsuit, but no commercials or further payments were made.