Why you should be listening Lizzo: The funkadelic artist merging genres
The epitome of free-flow confidence and a “me, myself, and I kind of attitude,” Lizzo is well-grounded in all elements of music.
Struck at the roots of her funkadelic style is defying bits of hip-hop, gospel soul, rock and even pop. Yet, her lyrics dig into the gist of things.
Like a true Taurus, Lizzo has the ability to see things from a realistic perspective. She’s hit rock bottom more than once. Still, Lizzo found out how to fuck with herself and pass along the message.
In simple terms, she’s a body positive ally who doesn’t ascribe to one thing. One twirl at a time Lizzo speaks on love, self-worth, assurance, and Black girl magic.
Recently at Coachella in sparkly leotards, Lizzo was given a clear space to bust out some high range notes on her flute. Whilst allowing Sasha Flute to save the day, she played a bit of “Juice” and fans couldn’t help but sing along to the infectious tune.
At that moment, Lizzo was poised to show off her sass and sovereign female dominance.
Dubbed as Melissa Jefferson on a day where April showers brought May flowers, Detroit born Lizzo took a bit of shine to funk-soul and rap then moved to Houston, TX.
At the age of 10, she received a flute from her father as a gift but at 14, Lizzo formed her own group. Moreso they called themselves “Cornrow Clique” and they took pride in packing heat when they rhymed.
From high school to college, Lizzo clutched onto her flute. Eventually, she went on to study music at the University of Houston with a scholarship but everything changed once her father passed away.
After fleeing to Missouri at 20-years-old, Lizzo‘s window of opportunity opened when she met Prince. Once they got familiar with each other, they worked on Prince’s album Plectrumelectrum.
From there, Lizzo collaborated with other artists such as Bastille but this was only the beginning. After tweeting “I want to work with Lazerbeak,” The producer responded quick in agreement and simply asked for in return is payment in the Mike’s Hard Lemonade form.
The duo then worked nonstop on her skin deep debut album Lizzobangers. Thanks to a suggestion made by the producer about the song “Worship,” Lizzo transitioned to singing and has stuck with it since.
The beats at most carry a high base to triumph her differences — as stated in “W.E.R.K Pt II“ she doesn’t need to conform to gender roles. After all, she’s “such a freakin lady, classy and beautiful/Thinking like a man, for those who don’t understand/Is having two grips to gain the upper hand.”
Lizzo has always expressed her uniqueness through song.
Fast forward to 2019 and we have Lizzo’s most recent release Cause I Love You, an album that’s meshed with unapologetic notations, self-love anthems and a juxtaposition of genres.
It’s enough to tempt the most jaded old head to listen. Whether you love or hate her, she doesn’t care. As quoted in her song “Juice,”
“It ain’t my fault that I’m out here makin’ news/I’m the pudding in the proof/Gotta blame it on my juice.”
This album also reflects on her individuality — the flute being the forefront of its sound. Still, this album leans towards her harmonious ways than rapping style. From the opening, her notes can be heard well and the emotion is felt.
A great example is heard in “Cause I Love You.” Here she attempts to express her devotion to a man who changed her life.
“Got me standing in the rain/Gotta get my hair pressed again/I would do it for you all, my friend/Ready baby? Will you be my man?/Wanna put you on a plane/Fly you out to wherever I am/Catch you on the low, I was ashamed/Now I’m crazy, about to ‘tatch your name.”
On some real ish, Lizzo holds the crown. Even when her thick thighs can’t save lives, Sasha Flute always gets the job done. The multi-artist doesn’t hide emotion and is comfortable in her own skin.
On the whole, she’s ready to tell all. Said best by Lizzo in “Heaven Help Me,”
“Y’all, who you think you sassing? (Sassing)/Say whoa, baby, I’m a classic.”