Lizzo Says She's Still Traumatized From Living Out Of Her Car Years Ago On Thanksgiving

Since her rise to fame in 2019, Lizzo has released hit after hit and established herself as a force in the music industry. However, the superstar reflected on her life before fame and the trauma she's still battling from those years. She spoke about being homeless and living out of her car during Thanksgiving in 2009 and said it's an experience that still scares her.

Lizzo had previously spoken about how she managed the experience with fans during a TikTok Q&A session. She admitted to not staying positive while living in her car and said the only thing that helped was remembering the experience was just a part of her story. Lizzo also discussed the experience in her new documentary on HBO Max, "Love, Lizzo."

In addition to the documentary, Lizzo is also releasing an HBO concert special on New Year's Eve. She shared her excitement for the special and said she hopes fans love watching it during the holiday. Lizzo has come far from her days without a home and has now won three Grammy Awards and an Emmy Award. 

Read on to find out more.

Shortly after Lizzo's father died in 2009, she lost her job, got kicked out of her apartment, and was forced to live out of her 1998 Subaru. Her new HBO documentary includes clips of the singer discussing her memories of that time, including the Thanksgiving she spent crying in the car.

Lizzo recently had an interview with Variety and discussed how Thanksgiving now brings up fear and anxiety for her. She said, "This was a trauma that I wish we could have avoided because I'm still working out that trauma. Like, that has shown up in a lot of places in my life."

The "About Damn Time" singer continued, "I was like, 'Damn,' that was 2009 [and I'm] still anxious. I still feel like something's gonna get taken away from me. I'm still scared, and I think it's unfortunate." Lizzo explained that she's now grateful for everything she has, like her own home, family and friends who love her, and her fans worldwide.

https://www.tiktok.com/@lizzo/video/7144426768450030890

During a September Q&A with fans on TikTok, Lizzo was asked about how she maintained her positivity while homeless and living out of her car. The question read, "Hey, girl! When u were living out of your car, what are some of the thoughts you would have to stay positive? Need hope."

In the video response, Lizzo got emotional as she admitted that she didn't stay positive. She said, "I didn't know what my life was gonna be, what it was gonna amount to… I felt broken." However, what helped her, was remembering that it was just one part of her story, and now she's in a better place and knows she survived.

In the comments, fans commiserated with the singer's experiences, with supportive comments like "thank you for sharing this, thank you for being real." Another comment read, "Positivity culture can be so toxic and unhelpful. thank you for saying this. Life can just be so damn hard sometimes."

In addition to the HBO documentary, Lizzo is preparing to release her concert special, titled "Lizzo: Live in Concert." The special premieres on HBO Max on New Year's Eve. She also spoke about the special during the Variety interview and shared her excitement for its release.

She said, "I'm excited because I don't play when it comes to being a live performer. I think when people realize the mic is on, the choreo was choreographing, the looks is looking, the Big Grrls is on point, the band is on point, Sophia Eris and me are on point, people are really gonna realize, 'Oh this is serious!'"

Lizzo also shared that she thinks her fans and viewers will "really enjoy seeing the concert." She explained that it would be great entertainment for "people don't have anything to do on New Year's Eve, so now they can pop a bottle of champagne or apple juice and they can watch the Lizzo show and it's a great show."

Lizzo has come far since those traumatizing days of 2009. The "2 Be Loved" singer has since won three Grammy Awards and an Emmy Award for her Amazon Prime reality show, "Watch Out for the Big Grrrls." In November, Lizzo also received five Grammy nominations for her fourth studio album, "Special."

According to Variety, during Lizzo's interview, her Emmy trophy was positioned close to her, and she spoke about its presence in the room. She said, "I won the Emmy and went straight on tour, so I never got to put it on my shelf. Then I did the 'Today' show this morning, and they mentioned my Emmy, so I brought it over for their cameras, so that's funny that she's just right there."