Lizzo Claims Free Speech In Postmates Driver Defamation Lawsuit: Report

One of the biggest controversies of Lizzo’s career to date could be considered the time she received backlash for publicly shaming a Postmates driver. The incident occurred back in September of 2019 when a female employee failed to deliver the singer’s order due to a mix-up. The employee showed up to the Boston hotel where Lizzo was staying, but upon arrival, wasn’t able to get in contact with her to confirm where the food was to be dropped off and moved on to her next order. Lizzo angrily reacted with a tweet that read as follows: 

“Hey @Postmates this girl Tiffany W. stole my food she lucky I don’t fight no more,” Lizzo wrote. “The front desk told me she walked in, clocked it as delivered, then walked out with food in hand. Her phone never rang, Postmates couldn’t contact her either. She clearly knew what she was doing and I just don’t want someone else to get they s##t stole too.”

Amanda Edwards/Getty Images

After being aired out by a celebrity like this, Tiffany alleged that she received death threats and didn’t feel safe enough to continue working for Postmates. In November, she filed a lawsuit against Lizzo for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. 

While Lizzo took to Twitter to apologize for irresponsibly using her platform and dragging a service worker, she seemingly doesn’t believe that she should be held legally accountable for her tweets. According to legal docs obtained by AllHipHop, Lizzo has responded to the lawsuit by arguing that her actions should be protected under the First Amendment to the Constitution, namely freedom of speech. The docs filed by Lizzo’s lawyer, Joanna M. Hill, request for the judge to dismiss the case and order Tiffany W. to compensate Lizzo for legal fees.