‘Truth’ starting to hurt for Lizzo
NEW YORK — Lizzo’s breakthrough tune, “Truth Hurts,” which spent six weeks on top of Billboard’s Hot 100 chart this year, features the signature line: “I just took a DNA test/ Turns out I’m 100 percent that b----.” The lyric originated from a 2017 tweet by singer Mina Lioness and was turned into a meme, which was then used in Lizzo’s song “Healthy,” created in 2017.
The songwriting brothers Justin and Jeremiah Raisen, who worked on “Healthy,” claim say they deserve writing credit on “Truth Hurts” since the song borrows from “Healthy,” a tune they co-wrote.
The songwriters credited on “Truth Hurts” are Lizzo, Ricky Reed, Tele and Jesse Saint John. “Truth Hurts” was originally released in September 2017 but got a boost this year after it was featured in the Netflix film “Someone Great.”
“After reaching out to Ricky Reed and Lizzo’s team about fixing it, we put the song in dispute in 2017 when it came out,” Justin Raisen wrote Tuesday on Instagram. “We’ve tried to sort this out quietly for the last two years ... but were shut down every time.”
Lizzo’s lawyer Cynthia Arato said in a statement: “They did not collaborate with Lizzo or anyone else to create this song, and they did not help write any of the material that they now seek to profit from, which is why they expressly renounced any claim to the work, in writing, months ago.”
The New York Times reported that the Raisens rescinded an earlier claim over “Truth Hurts” through their publisher, Kobalt.
“The last thing we want to do is throw any negativity toward Lizzo’s momentum and movement as a cultural figure. If we believe in what she’s preaching, believing in ourselves & our own voices is something we thought she’d understand,” Justin Raisen wrote.