Lizzo Details the "Soul-Crushing" Toll of Her Latest Album's Reception

Lizzo Details the "Soul-Crushing" Toll of Her Latest Album's Poor Reception

The truth about Lizzo’s latest album reception certainly hurt.

In fact, the Grammy winner could hardly believe that her recent album B---h sold so few units and failed to chart on the Billboard 200, especially after her 2022 record Special peaked at number two on the same chart.

“I had all of these high hopes for what we would do the first week,” Lizzo admitted on the June 28 episode of influencer Swiftologist’s Proto Pop series, “and it didn't match.”

“I was so excited ‘cause I met my pre-save goal,” she added. “And then it dropped and I was like, ‘Oh, OK, this isn't what I kind of thought it would kind of be.”

According to music data company Luminate, her new album sold approximately 3,000 units in the first week of release in June, per Rolling Stone. That number dropped to 650 in the second week.

And though the 38-year-old didn’t think the sales this time around “would be crazy,” she wasn’t prepared for the actual numbers.

“There was like, 24 hours of my life where I based my success and my worth on a number,” Lizzo shared. “And I think that was soul-crushing."

Thankfully, the “About Damn Time” singer was able to rely on friends like SZA to remind her that she didn’t need to focus on her disappointment.

"SZA called me. She was like, ‘Hey, you're on my mind.' And I was like, ‘Am I a failure?’” Lizzo recalled. “And she was like, ‘Oh my God, no.' She's so sweet.”

And that conversation helped the “Truth Hurts” singer reframe the situation in her head.

Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images for BET

"I meditated and I prayed on it and I was like, ‘This is why I don't judge myself and my success or my impact on numbers,’” she explained. “This is why I don't do that, because it's soul-crushing if you do.”

Now, Lizzo is hopeful that fans will discover her new album in the future, especially because she felt like the music on B---h was some of her “best stuff." Ultimately, though, she knows that the music industry is different than it was three years ago.

“Also my relationship and my connection musically with the world is different,” she added. “And I think I had to kind of mourn that. And now it was like, shake it off.”

And regardless, her new album is “a stepping stone in the right direction” for the type of music Lizzo wants to create.

“I had to course correct my destiny and my career because people were trying to veer it off my path,” she shared, “and I will never let that happen.”

For more on how Lizzo has combated negativity throughout her career, keep reading.

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