In the news
■ Lizzo seemed to announce her departure from music last week, writing on Instagram that she’d faced too much hostility and signing off, “I QUIT.” The Grammy award winner, 35, declared that she was tired of the “lies being told about me for clout & views” and “being the butt of the joke every single time because of how I look.” She didn’t explain what triggered her post, but the singer is battling two lawsuits from former employees. The first, filed in August by three former backup dancers, accuses Lizzo of weight shaming and bullying employees, and subjecting them to sexual harassment and racial discrimination. A stylist made similar claims in a September lawsuit that alleged “widespread racial and sexual harassment.” Lizzo, who built her fame on upbeat songs proclaiming body positivity, denies the charges.
■ Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco was last week placed on administrative leave though June 1, amid an ongoing investigation into allegations that the All-Star had an inappropriate relationship with a minor. Prosecutors in Franco’s native Dominican Republic say the player, 23, had a months-long relationship with a 14-year-old girl and paid off her mother with thousands of dollars in cash and gifts. Franco— benched by the Rays in August as rumors of the relationship started to circulate online—faces up to five years in prison if found guilty of sexual and psychological abuse. Prosecutors have released WhatsApp messages they say Franco sent to the girl as the relationship was uncovered. “It is a rule for all teams that we cannot talk to minors,” Franco allegedly wrote, “and yet I took the risk and I loved it.” The player will keep collecting his $2 million annual salary while on leave.
■ Rudy Giuliani is trapped in a debt-filled “nightmare world,” the former New York City mayor was overheard telling friends at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort this week, reports the New York Post. The ex–Trump attorney filed for bankruptcy in December after being ordered to pay $148 million to two Georgia poll workers he had falsely accused of committing voter fraud in the 2020 election. Creditors are now trying to force Giuliani to sell his $3.5 million Florida condo to pay off his debts. The Mar-a-Lago eavesdropper said Giuliani told pals that “he wakes up every day” and can’t believe his financial nightmare is “real.”