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- Lizzo's "Truth Hurts" has become a viral hit nearly two years after its release, thanks to being featured in the Netflix film Someone Great and on the app TikTok.
- The song has three nominations at the 2020 Grammys.
- Here, a breakdown of the song's lyrics and meaning—and how it became one of the best songs of summer 2019.
It’s Lizzo’s world, and we’re all just lucky to live in it. If anyone had a stellar 2019, it’s Lizzo, whose album Cuz I Love You was a smash hit with critics and fans old and new. Now, the star is the most-nominated artist at the 2020 Grammys with a total of eight nominations. Nods include three nominations for "Truth Hurts," Album of the Year for Cuz I Love You, and Best New Artist.
She's also performing at the ceremony, which you can catch on CBS Sunday, January 26 at 8 p.m. ET.
The singer mixes big diva vocals with relatable stream-of-consciousness lyrics about womanhood, self-worth, and even the mundane. (Her song "Phone" from her EP Coconut Oil is literally about her search for her misplaced cell phone.) But the Detroit native is also shamelessly self-confident; Lizzo loves Lizzo, and we all do, too.
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"I’m making music that hopefully makes other people feel good and helps me discover self-love," she told Rolling Stone. "That message I want to go directly to black women, big black women, black trans women. Period.”
While Lizzo has carved a name for herself with bops like “Juice” and “Good As Hell,” one song has become a sleeper hit almost a year and a half after its initial release. “Truth Hurts” was first released on September 19, 2017, and its lyrics are an ode to self-love after a relationship ends—but the meaning behind it all is that heartbreak doesn’t matter, because you are “100 percent that b*tch” who puts “the ‘sing’ in single.” In other words: If you’re going through a breakup, “Truth Hurts” was written for you.
After the song’s initial release, it's had a massive revival to become one of the best summer songs of summer 2019 after being included in the Netflix film Someone Great in a memorable scene featuring stars Gina Rodriguez and DeWanda Wise. And yes, now it has three Grammy noms three years after its initial release.
"I think Lizzo, and especially with all the new stuff that's coming out, is so much about self-love and empowerment and being a woman and being comfortable in your own skin and being comfortable being the baddest bitch you can be," Someone Great writer-director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson told Thrillist about the song’s inclusion in the film. "All three of these women are on different journeys, and they are each their own bad bitch."
Those who bought stock in mouth swabs also have Lizzo to thank for the rise in purchases: Users of popular app TikTok added to the song’s virality by meme-ing the song’s most iconic lyric: “I just took a DNA test, turns out I'm 100% that b*tch,” while swabbing their mouths to create their own “DNA results.” This dog even learned it was Canadian!
The song has felt the impact of viral success: “Truth Hurts” debuted at #50 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week of May 18, 2019, becoming Lizzo’s first chart topper, later peaking at #26. Women everywhere have felt the effects of screaming “You coulda had a bad bitch, non-committal” as a form of release.
But in case you've been wondering about the lyric “Bom bom bi bom bi dum bum bay,” there's actually a deeper meaning there—it's a reference to “Bam Bam” by Sister Nancy, one of the most sampled reggae songs of all time. According to Billboard, elements of it have been used in everything from “Famous” by Kanye West to "Bam” by Jay-Z and "Lost Ones” by Lauryn Hill.
As for the meaning behind the song’s opening lyric, let’s have Lizzo explain:
Deep, right?
Lizzo wants to remind the listener that they are beautiful, they are strong, they have power, they are worthy, and they don’t need a man to affirm that belief—all while encouraging them to dance until it hurts. Her inclusiveness goes even into the song’s lyric about “sidechicks.” Talking to The Cut, Lizzo shared, “I sing, ‘I will never ever, ever be your sidechick,’ but originally the lyric was a sidechick.” After a beat, Lizzo continued explaining: “B*tch, what about sidechicks! I don’t want to exclude them! I don’t want to make them feel bad.” Lizzo is for the people, all of the people—even you, sidechicks.
In Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” world, Women can Have It All (really!) while also not being afraid to cry—or remind you that a a man who keeps you down is not the path forward. “You’re 'posed to hold me down/ But you’re holding me back/ And that's the sound of me not calling you back" is simply a sassy way of telling someone “I’m done with you keeping me from greatness, and I won’t let you take from me anymore.”
And of course, Lizzo makes a reference to her hometown sports team, which definitely took on a double meaning come NFL draft time:
The video for “Truth Hurts” is the cherry on top of a killer track, with Lizzo leaving her groom at the altar so she can marry the only person worthy of Lizzo’s excellence: herself. It’s hilarious, it’s relatable, it’s confident…it’s Lizzo.
And yes, before you ask, “Truth Hurts” is about a real person. While we’re still wondering about whether she really had a “new man on the Minnesota Vikings,” Lizzo revealed at a show in Detroit that "the person I wrote that song about is from Detroit." Gives another meaning to “Detroit vs. Everybody”, right?
Here are the full lyrics of "Truth Hurts," courtesy of Genius.com:
Why're men great till they gotta be great?
Woo!
I just took a DNA test, turns out I'm 100% that bitch
Even when I'm crying crazy
Yeah, I got boy problems, that's the human in me
Bling bling, then I solve 'em, that's the goddess in me
You coulda had a bad bitch, non-committal
Help you with your career just a little
You're 'posed to hold me down, but you're holding me back
And that's the sound of me not calling you back
Why're men great till they gotta be great?
Don't text me, tell it straight to my face
Best friend sat me down in the salon chair
Shampoo press, get you out of my hair
Fresh photos with the bomb lighting
New man on the Minnesota Vikings
Truth hurts, needed something more exciting
Bom bom bi dom bi dum bum bay
You tried to break my heart?
Oh, that breaks my heart
That you thought you ever had it
No, you ain't from the start
Hey, I'm glad you're back with your bitch
I mean who would wanna hide this?
I will never, ever, ever, ever, ever be your side chick
I put the sing in single
Ain't worried 'bout a ring on my finger
So you can tell your friend, “shoot your shot” when you see 'em
It's okay, he already in my DMs
I'ma hit you back in a minute
I don't play tag, bitch, I been it
We don't fuck with lies, we don't do goodbyes
We just keep it pushing like aye yi yi
Why're men great till they gotta be great?
Don't text me, tell it straight to my face
Best friend sat me down in the salon chair
Shampoo press, get you out of my hair
Fresh photos with the bomb lighting
New man on the Minnesota Vikings
Truth hurts, needed something more exciting
Bom bom bi bom bi dum bum bay
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