The lawsuit relates, among other things, to sexual harassment, unlawful termination and assault.
Back in August 2023, Lizzo was sued by three former backup dancers for “sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment.” The singer denied all the allegations. But now she is faced with further allegations.
Costume designer Asha Daniels, who worked on Lizzo’s 2023 tour, filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on September 21. She accuses the singer of racial and sexual harassment, discrimination based on disability, unlawful termination and bodily harm. The lawsuit is directed against Lizzo, whose real name is Melissa Jefferson, her production company Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc. (BGBT), her wardrobe manager Amanda Nomura and her tour manager Carlina Gugliotta.
The focus is on this year’s international tour of the singer. Daniels claims she saw Amanda Nomura and other supervisors “hiring sex workers for lewd acts, attending sex shows and purchasing hard drugs” during her stop in Amsterdam. The costume designer probably felt pressured to take part. She also claims Lizzo and her management team knew about the behavior.
These allegations are consistent with the lawsuit filed by Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez. The three dancers claimed in August that they were publicly body-shamed, forced to perform sexual acts on a stripper, and one of the employees was discriminated against because of her religion. The singer’s lawyer announced a few weeks later that Lizzo would be suing her former dancers for “malicious prosecution.”
Serious allegations against Lizzo’s manager
The costume designer’s latest accusations specifically target wardrobe manager Nomura. She was particularly noticed by her aggressive behavior and threatening expressions. For example, she said that she would “kill a bitch if it came down to it and someone threatened her job.” Nomura also denied Daniels breaks and pressured her to work on her days off.
The complaint describes a specific instance in which Nomura appears to have rolled a heavy clothing rack over Asha Daniels’ foot. When she expressed that she was in severe pain and explained that she needed to sit down, the manager “pushed her into the clothes rack while claiming that the plaintiff was not allowed to make excuses about her foot and that she needed to help Nomura move the clothes,” according to the lawsuit the statement of claim. When Daniels wore orthopedic shoes due to her injury, the manager allegedly forced her to change back into tennis shoes.
The brief continues: “Not only was the plaintiff denied medical treatment (on this and other occasions), but she was also forced to be on her feet most of the day and was denied any rest – even after she sprained her ankle.”
Responding to Asha Daniel’s complaint
Although Asha Daniels complained to tour manager Carlina Gugliotta in February about “widespread racial and sexual harassment” in which “black dancers were mocked, objectified and denied accommodation,” Gugliotta did not change the circumstances and fired the costume designer after all, the lawsuit says.
Daniels claims she “suffered from constant anxiety and panic attacks during the tour due to the racist and sexualized environment; she suffers from ongoing anxiety and PTSD even after the tour; and she suffers from migraines and migraine-related eye twitches and eye distortions, brain fog and fatigue.” As a result, the former employee is demanding damages, which are quantified in more detail in the lawsuit.
While the lawsuit was filed on Thursday (September 21), Lizzo was presented with the Quincy Jones Humanitarian Award by the Black Music Action Coalition. The Grammy winner’s rep Stefan Friedman responded to the latest lawsuit with the following statement: “As Lizzo receives an award tonight for the incredible charitable work she has done to uplift all people, an attorney is attempting to tarnish that honor by He hires someone to file a false, absurd publicity lawsuit who has never met or even spoken to Lizzo. We will give this matter as much attention as it deserves. No.”