'This is for the big girls': Lizzo gives emotional speech on representation after Emmy win
Lizzo gives emotional speech on representation following Emmy win (Mark Terrill/AP)
Lizzo delivered an emotional speech on representation at the Emmys in which she said that all she had ever wanted as a child was to “see me in the media”.
The About Damn Time singer said she had wanted to see “someone who was fat like me, black like me, beautiful like me” as she accepted the award for best competition series at the annual awards.
She won the accolade for her Amazon series Watch Out For The Big Grrrls.
The eight-part dance show competition sees 13 plus-sized women compete to become part of Lizzo’s backing dancer line-up.
It’s about dang time! 🎶 @Lizzo’s #WatchOutfortheBigGrrrls (@PrimeVideo) wins the #Emmy for Outstanding Competition Program! #Emmys #Emmys2022 pic.twitter.com/fh1oLoV3bw
— Television Academy (@TelevisionAcad) September 13, 2022
Accepting the Emmy onstage she became visibly emotional, saying: “The trophy is nice but my emotion is for the people who are on the stage with me.
“The stories that they shared, they’re not that unique they just don’t get the platform. Telling stories, let’s just tell more stories.
“When I was a little girl all I wanted to see was me in the media, someone who was fat like me, black like me, beautiful like me.
“If I could go back and tell little Lizzo something I’d be like ‘you’re gonna see that person but bitch it’s gonna have to be you’.
Addressing the cast of her show, who were sitting in the audience, she continued: “One year ago these women were filming the television show that would change their lives forever.
“They are Emmy award winning superstars who are going on a world tour.
“Make some noise for my big girls, I love you so much. Daddy I love you, oh my God.
“God bless you all this is for the big girls.”
The annual Emmys show ceremony recognises the best in television excellence, and is organised by the US Television Academy.
Saturday Night Live star Kenan Thompson hosted the 2022 show, which took place at the Microsoft Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles.
The comedian kicked off the show with explosive medley of club remixes of popular television theme tunes including Friends, Game Of Thrones and Stranger Things, reassuring audiences that the tracks were “legally cleared”.
