Powerhouse Artist Lizzo Gives Us Self Love Anthems on Her Cuz I Love You Tour

Lizzo encompasses artistry full of compassion, high energy, and powerhouse vocals. Her live performances are complete with tequila drinking, bosom bouncing and self-love anthems.

One month after the release of Lizzo’s Cuz I Love You album, she performed her second sold out show at DC’s 9:30 Club on May 20th, 2019. Blasting onto the stage in a fuchsia fringe coat, stoned boots, and a high ponytail, the singer belted the title track of the now #1 album Cuz I Love You.

Lizzo belts title track “Cuz I Love You”. (Photo by Josephine Hill/Concert Consumed)

The setlist did not disappoint her day-one fans. High energy tracks from her 2016-releases Coconut Oil EP such as “Worship”, “Phone” and “Scuse Me” sent the audience into a massive sing-along. Her dancers, thebiggrrrls, took to the stage in a full on twerk fest, equipped with booty shorts labeled “don’t touch”, knee pads, and fitness bars. Twerking was not the only specialty on display as Lizzo incorporated a step routine into the show transitioning into her beloved singles “Fitness”, “Water Me” and “Boys”.

It wouldn’t be a Lizzo show if you couldn’t get in your feelings for a second. “Jerome” accomplished just that! This track carried conceptual resemblance to Erykah Badu’s 1997 song “Tyrone”, but 20+ years later we can all relate to having this man in our lives, no matter what his name is. In those moments, it feels good to be supported by your girls. Lizzo showed love to her longtime best friend and DJ, Sophia Eris, with a surprise birthday cake.

Now, it’s no secret that the 2017 single “Truth Hurts” exploded when paired with Netflix’s “Someone Great” trailer in March. The video garnered millions of views since and reigns as the most quotable break up song of 2019. The sea of people stayed in their feelings for “Soulmate” and Prince-influenced “Crybaby”. She began to illuminate in her black holographic bodysuit as beams of cellphone lights set the tone for these emotional anthems.

In awe of the audience, she recites the lyrics to “Soulmate” revealing she aspires to be that person and is doing the self-work to achieve that growth. An expression of vulnerability took hold of her, admitting the power of crying layered with humor proclaiming, “bad bitches cry too, that’s how our skin be poppin.” Parallel to the relief she finds in crying, she urges the audience to partake in all forms of laughter. Black joy is an act of resistance.

“As a black woman, I was told to hold my emotions down – to hold everything down, I was supposed to hold down the fort, hold down my tears, hold down my emotions,” she said.

Lizzo full of emotion during second sold-out show at 9:30 Club. (Photo by Josephine Hill/Concert Consumed)

The Alabama Abortion Ban was signed into law days before. Lizzo acknowledges her presence in this world and how the world perceives her as a big black sexually-expressive woman. She addressed the straight white men that might be supporting her and urges them to extend their allyship beyond music and bring support to these human rights issues.

“Activists, black people, brown people, queer people, women, non-binary [people] – you are more than capable to run this country,” Lizzo declared.

The feminist empowerment song “Like a Girl” broke out from the speakers, followed by the dance track “Tempo” featuring the illustrious Missy Elliott. Accordingly, audience members were handpicked to come dance on stage. Her fans gave us splits, flips, and twerking galore. Suddenly, the show came to a close.

Moments later, the crowd chanted loudly for an encore. Lizzo paraded back on stage with stellar performances of her early career singles “Good As Hell” and “Coconut Oil”. The night was sealed to perfection with the final performance of her commercial hit “Juice” as confetti fell from the ceiling.

“All I ever wanted was for my music to help somebody in someway, whether big or small,” she said.