Born in Detroit in the late 80’s, Lizzo spent much of her formative years in the church, where she was raised on the gospel sounds of The Winans, The Clark Sisters, and Fred Hammond, along with mainstay secular artists such as Stevie Wonder and Elton John. At the age of 10 her family moved to Houston, TX, and Lizzo was exposed to a wide array of emerging Southern musical styles, from the trademark chopped and screwed rap tracks of the underground, to the progressive and polished R&B sounds of groups like Destiny’s Child that were raising the city’s national profile to new heights. In fact, it was after she stumbled across a Destiny’s Child performance at Wal-Mart that Lizzo—then a 5th grader-- was inspired to start writing music on her own. Over the next decade that decision would take her through the trenches of some of the most varied musical genres: R&B girl groups (I.N.I.T.I.A.L.S., Cornrow Clique), progressive rock bands (Elypseas), solo rap ventures, and electro-pop duos (Lizzo & The Larva Ink).
In 2011 she made the move to Minneapolis with Larva Ink in order to be a part of that city’s blossoming and collaborative musical community. Lizzo & The Larva Ink was well received there, and the group earned a few encouraging nods from the press. Lizzo was soon introduced to Sophia Eris and Claire de Lune, with whom she would form The Chalice, the three-piece all-female rap/R&B group that would elevate Lizzo’s profile and reputation. In 2012 The Chalice released We Are The Chalice, an album that would gain them instant local success amongst fans and critics alike, garnering City Pages’ prestigious Best New Band and Picked To Click accolades in the same year.
The success brought setbacks, though, and a falling out soon led to the demise of Lizzo & The Larva Ink. Feeling discontent with the loss of one group and the hurried blur of success of another, Lizzo was creatively drained from writing We Are The Chalice in two short months. She found herself in the throes of her first full-blown case of writer’s block. Unable to create music for herself, she began listening to several different local albums in hopes of finding inspiration. It was LAVA BANGERS, a 20-track instrumental mixtape from Doomtree producer and Minneapolis music vet Lazerbeak, that ultimately caught her ear. Beaks’ beats proved the fix for Lizzo’s problem. “I sat at home and listened to LAVA BANGERS, and when “Lift Every Voice” came on, my writer’s block was cured,” says Lizzo. “I think it revived my gospel roots. I wrote pages and pages of songs, and finally reached out to Lazerbeak, not thinking anything would come of it.”
Her timing could not have been better. Beak, impressed with Lizzo’s output with The Chalice, as well as her guest appearances on several other local releases, was looking for a change of pace from his daily Doomtree production and business responsibilities. He immediately signed on to work on some demos. Beat tapes were exchanged, songs were written, and mutual friend and musical collaborator Ryan Olson (Totally Gross National Product founder, Gayngs/Marijuana Deathsquads mastermind) was brought on board to creatively oversee the project. Olson recorded and edited all 15 tracks in his bedroom studio, bringing in laid back hype-man Cliff Rhymes along the way to add even more layers to Lizzo’s dynamic vocals.
LIZZOBANGERS is the culmination of that four-way collaboration, an album that manages to capture all of the varied musical influences of Lizzo’s upbringing and combine them with the forward-thinking experimental production style of Beak and Olson. The end result is a brave new project that encapsulates the best parts of both the familiar and the future.
W.E.R.K. Pt. II
Lizzo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Werk like a Boss
Talk talk talk talk talk talk talk
That's what everybody and they mama wanna do
Whomp whomp whomp
Remote please, mute!
You can have your pennies and your two cent 'tude
Anti-fem, she's so wrong. I'm gonna post this on my blog)
Take a hike! Matter'o fact--jog
I've been running what took so long
I've been gunning for the top (boy stop! )
I've been reviving this thing, Ben Taub
If you took it upon yourself to take your self so literal
You're missing on the minerals to liberate your inner liberal
Generally I don't give a rat's patootie
But you pursued me
So here's my battle cry against those who slew me, who never knew me
(Big girl, small world)
Do I need to re-remind you that you sipping from the C-h-a-l-i-c-e
And I'm doing all this for the W-E?
Getting dirt for the turf like a workaholic
But your worth cop a shirt 'cuz you work is na-na
Niggahs can't pay rent putting hustle in their mou-mou
Grasp for the raps for the stack when they can. Do
Slack, and I have to attack and offend you
Smashing these tracks... and that's what I'm into
Lookin like a girl cause I'm keeping it youthful
Such a freakin lady, classy and beautiful
Thinking like a man, for those who don't understand
Is having two grips to gain the upper hand
If you had the courage to give me reprimand to my face
Instead of slight of hand, you da Man!
(My employees no-i-me)
Do I need to re-remind you that you sipping from the C-h-a-l-i-c-e
And I'm doing all this for the W-E?
The lyrics of Lizzo's song W.E.R.K. Pt. II are all about empowerment and shutting down naysayers. In the opening lines, Lizzo encourages the listener to "werk like a boss", calling out the haters and their endless chatter. The next few lines address those who criticize Lizzo, suggesting that their negative opinions are worth little more than "pennies" and a "two cent 'tude". Lizzo then asserts that she's been working hard to achieve success and recognition, and that she won't be stopped by anyone who doubts her abilities.
In the next verse, Lizzo continues to take on the doubters and critics, describing how she's been "getting dirt for the turf like a workaholic" and taking control of her own destiny. She calls out those who are content to "cop a shirt 'cuz [their] work is na-na", or who can't make ends meet despite hustling constantly. Lizzo also highlights her own unique style and approach to her work, which involves thinking like a man and using "two grips to gain the upper hand". All throughout the song, Lizzo emphasizes the importance of confidence, hard work, and self-respect.
Line by Line Meaning
Werk!
Let's get to work!
Werk like a Boss
Work with confidence and power
Talk talk talk talk talk talk talk
That's what everybody and they mama wanna do
Whomp whomp whomp
Remote please, mute!
You can have your pennies and your two cent 'tude
(Oh my God that's so messed up, how dare she say that in a song
Anti-fem, she's so wrong. I'm gonna post this on my blog)
Take a hike! Matter'o fact--jog
I don't have time for people who talk too much and have nothing to say. I won't let their negative opinions bring me down.
I've been running what took so long
I've been gunning for the top (boy stop!)
I've been reviving this thing, Ben Taub
If you took it upon yourself to take your self so literal
You're missing on the minerals to liberate your inner liberal
Generally I don't give a rat's patootie
But you pursued me
So here's my battle cry against those who slew me, who never knew me
(Big girl, small world)
I've been working hard for a long time and now I'm finally getting recognized. Don't take things too literally, focus on the bigger picture and who you are on the inside.
Do I need to re-remind you that you sipping from the C-h-a-l-i-c-e
And I'm doing all this for the W-E?
Remember that I'm working hard for us, while you sit back and enjoy the fruits of my labor.
Getting dirt for the turf like a workaholic
But your worth cop a shirt 'cuz you work is na-na
Niggahs can't pay rent putting hustle in their mou-mou
Grasp for the raps for the stack when they can. Do
Slack, and I have to attack and offend you
Smashing these tracks... and that's what I'm into
I work hard and earn my success, while others don't put in as much effort. Those who don't work hard can't achieve what I have. I won't tolerate laziness or excuses.
Lookin like a girl cause I'm keeping it youthful
Such a freakin lady, classy and beautiful
Thinking like a man, for those who don't understand
Is having two grips to gain the upper hand
If you had the courage to give me reprimand to my face
Instead of slight of hand, you da Man!
(My employees no-i-me)
I embrace my feminine side while still being strong and independent. I know how to handle situations like a man would. Don't hide behind gossip and rumors, be honest and upfront with me.
Contributed by Caden R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Doja Cat
on Pink
Whoa that’s a lot of work to do and my restless