Drag performers will at all times have a spot on Lizzo’s stage, the “Juice” artist declared throughout her Friday present at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn.
The Grammy winner took the stage for the second half of The Special Tour, and introduced out drag performers like Aquaria, Kandy Muse and Vanessa Vanji, per of the live performance.
“In light of recent and tragic events and current events, I was told by people on the internet, ‘Cancel your shows in Tennessee,’ ‘Don’t go to Tennessee,’” Lizzo stated throughout a pause in her set. “Their reason was valid, but why would I not come to the people who need to hear this message the most?”
“Why would I not create a safe space in Tennessee where we can celebrate drag entertainers and celebrate our differences?”
Lizzo’s speech was met with applause from the crowd. She thanked the people in Tennessee for “standing up for your rights, protecting each other and holding the people accountable who should be protecting us.”
In an Instagram comment, Aquaria wrote of being included in the performance, “Thank you a lot for the platform for me and the drag race ladies and particularly for uplifting the queens on Tennessee! Those girls are all so sturdy and courageous and I do know tonight was undoubtedly the perfect of a tough scenario for everybody. Thanks for shedding mild for our pals who undoubtedly want our hand nowadays. We respect it.”
Back in March, the Republican-led Tennessee state senate passed the bill in public spaces where children may be present. Under the new piece of legislation, which was quickly signed by Governor Bill Lee and , drag performances are prohibited in venues that are accessible to minors.
Lizzo has spoken out about this issue before. In March, she used social media to , which also includes banning gender-affirming care.
The singer also released called Your Skin through her brand Yitty, which included chest binders and tucking underwear. A statement on the Yitty Instagram page read of the new line, out in summer, “When we are saying we help each physique, we imply it. We consider in radical self-love for individuals of all gender identities — together with the trans, non-binary, gender-fluid and gender non-conforming communities which were chronically underserved. So, we determined to take our experience and create kinds that serve these exact same communities.”
That similar month, Lizzo her ideas on the bigotry she has seen in current years.
“I’ve never heard a person say why they’re racist… Or fatphobic,” she shared. “I’ve never heard a reason why someone is transphobic.. I think if we knew ‘why’ these people felt this way there would way less support for these ideals. Because the ‘why’ is more insidious than we realize.”
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