Lizzo Explains Why She Might Not Release Her Album ‘Love in Real Life’

Fans were surprised earlier this year when, despite Lizzo sharing in March that her new album, Love in Real Life, was finished, they instead received a rap mixtape from the star titled My Face Hurts From Smiling. Now, the singer is ready to explain why she changed gears.

In a new cover story for New York magazine published Monday (Sept. 8), Lizzo revealed that she’s unsure of if or when her previously announced album will be released, saying that she made the decision to pivot away from the project for the time being. “By 2025, I’ve changed, the world has changed so much, and so much has happened,” she said, explaining she wrote the bulk of Love in Real Life in 2022. “It just wasn’t what I was feeling right now. I was like, ‘I need to do s–t differently and I don’t know what it is, but I’m going to just start following my instincts.’”

After the album’s lead singles failed to break through on the Billboard Hot 100, Lizzo said that she had a sit-down with the higher-ups at her label, Atlantic Records, to explain why she wanted to shelve the album for the time being. “I sat down at the table and I said, ‘I need to do s–t my way starting from now. And I need y’all to have my back. It’s going to be a little scary,’” she said. “And everybody agreed, and they said, ‘We got your back, whatever you need.’”

The singer said that the release of Love in Real Life is now “TBD,” neither confirming nor denying if or when she plans to release the project. Instead, she’s focusing on putting out the music she wants to, including her mixtape My Face Hurts From Smiling. “I’m in one of the most exciting, creative flows I’ve had as a human being on this planet,” she said. Who cares if you don’t like it, b—h? I got 7,000 more songs like it. This ain’t the only album I’ll ever do. This ain’t the only song I’m going to ever sing. B—h, you can’t get rid of me!”

The decision came after the “Truth Hurts” singer dealt with significant public backlash after three of her former dancers accused her and sued her for sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment, before being sued again by her former wardrobe assistant accusing her and her touring company of fostering a racist and sexist environment on her world tour. Lizzo has since been dismissed from the second lawsuit, while her company Big Grrrl Big Touring Inc. is still a defendant in the case. She previously denied all claims of any wrongdoing, calling them “false allegations,” with her spokesperson claiming to Billboard in a statement that the second suit was a “publicity stunt.”

In her interview, Lizzo explained the emotional toll the lawsuits took on her, recounting a story of being with a friend and their kids at a theme park and having to excuse herself to go sit in her car and deal with the fallout. “I’m in the car crying out of frustration that I could not say what I wanted to say and just get on Instagram Live and be like, ‘What’s going on?’” she explained. “It was legal. Everything you say and do will be held against you in the court of law.”

See Lizzo’s New York magazine cover below: