From Grammys to 2,650 Sales: How Lizzo Lost Her Crown

Just a few years ago, Lizzo was untouchable. Grammy wins stacked like trophies, chart-toppers on repeat, and a brand built on confidence and self-love that felt genuinely revolutionary. Then came 2026 — and the fall was steep.

Her fifth studio album,“Bitch,”landed with a thud. The numbers tell the story: only 2,650 copies sold in the first week. Compare that to 2022’s“Special,”which debuted with 39,000 copies sold, and you’re looking at a collapse that’s hard to ignore. Even worse? None of her three new singles have managed to chart on the Hot 100. For an artist who once owned the radio, that’s a stunning reversal.

Lizzo didn’t stay quiet about it. Taking to X, she pointed fingers at the industry itself — specifically, how streaming has replaced radio as the dominant force in music consumption, and how she’d thrived as a“radio darling”in a landscape that no longer exists. Fair point, maybe. The music business has fundamentally shifted. But there’s another elephant in the room, one she also acknowledged: the 2023 lawsuit in which her backup dancers accused her of sexual harassment, weight-shaming, and creating a hostile work environment. The allegations were stark and public, including claims that she forced dancers to touch a woman’s breasts in Amsterdam. Despite multiple attempts to get it dismissed, the case is moving forward.

Here’s where it gets complicated, and where industry observers are pointing fingers at something deeper than just changing algorithms. An ex-music exec told Rolling Stone that Lizzo“was a very song-driven, radio-hits-driven artist who lacked a core fanbase, and that’s what you need today for career longevity.”Translation: her hits drew casual listeners, not devotees who’d stick around through scandal. But the lawsuit added a layer that cut to the heart of her entire brand. Lizzo built her public persona on being the underdog, the confident voice for self-acceptance and kindness. When she was called to account for allegedly mistreating the very people her message was supposed to uplift, fans didn’t just tune out — they actively deserted.

Whether it’s the lawsuit, the shift from radio to streaming, or some combination of both, the result is the same: Lizzo is no longer on the ascent. She downplayed the accusations in a CBS interview earlier this year, saying“the truth is less salacious than the headlines,”but the court will tell a different story when the trial finally gets scheduled. For now, her album is struggling to find an audience, and her comeback will be a lot harder than her rise to the top.