Even before Lizzo fell from favour amidst accusations of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment, the shine was already beginning to wear off of the pop artist, as the bubblegum bops of 2019's Cuz I Love You gave way to the stock-music funk of her just-fine follow-up single "About Damn Time."
After those controversies, it was hard to feel too strongly when she hinted that she might step back from the music industry entirely. Don't threaten me with a good time!
Now, Lizzo is back with a rock pivot on "Love in Real Life." It was probably always inevitable that her comeback track would begin with a bold declaration that she doesn't care about likes or views, and this one doesn't disappoint, as it comes with a short spoken intro in which Lizzo desperately tries to insist that she doesn't need anyone's approval.
What follows is an antiseptic Strokes knockoff with an emotional arc that lasts about 40 seconds, which is how long it takes for Lizzo to go from singing about crying in the bathroom doing tequila shots over a riff resembling Kidz Bop covering the Black Crowes.
It paints Lizzo as the victim of circumstance, triumphantly hitting the town and restoring her faith in humanity. It claims to be about "Love in Real Life" — but if only real-life redemption stories were this simplistic.