Lizzo has found herself facing criticism over a new commercial that left some longtime fans questioning how much has changed since her vegan days.
The singer’s latest partnership was meant to highlight her fun-loving side, but it quickly caught the attention of animal rights activists and social media users who remembered her years of promoting a plant-based lifestyle.
Highlights
- Lizzo has been facing heavy criticism from fans and animal rights group PETA after starring in a new commercial for restaurant chain Chili's.
- In the advertisement, the singer sings her own version of the famous "Baby Back Ribs" jingle and performs using a giant rib-shaped prop.
- PETA blasted the campaign as "cruel as hell," accusing the singer of completely selling out after years of promoting a plant-based vegan lifestyle.
“This is so embarrassing. Her stock must be way, way down to have to stoop to this,” one critic wrote.
A Chili’s commercial sparked the latest backlash against Lizzo
Image credits: lizzobeeating/Instagram
The controversy began after Lizzo appeared in a Chili’s commercial.
The ad opened with the singer pretending to reject the idea of performing the restaurant’s famous Baby Back Ribs jingle.
“Listen, I don’t care how good Chili’s ribs are, Lizzo is never singing the Chili’s rib jingle, OK?” she said while talking on the phone.
Moments later, she appeared to change her mind after hearing the offer and was shown wearing a Chili’s uniform while singing her own version of the jingle.
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The commercial featured Lizzo dancing around the restaurant, performing with a giant rib prop and even playing what appeared to be a rib-shaped flute.
While some fans enjoyed the campaign, others were shocked to see the singer promoting meat products after years of being associated with veganism.
“When getting the bag is a factor, all vegetables go out the door,” one person commented.
“This is extremely disturbing. You went from being vegan to THIS?!” another wrote.
Following the criticism, PETA also accused Lizzo of betraying the values she once promoted
Image credits: lizzobeeating/Instagram
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The strongest reaction came from animal rights organization PETA.
The group reposted part of the commercial alongside footage showing pigs being mistreated in the meat industry.
“Selling out to play a pig’s rib flute for a Chili’s commercial… Wow, Lizzo, you really are cruel as hell,” PETA wrote on Instagram.
The organization went even further in its caption.
“PIGS WANT THEIR RIBS BACK,” the group wrote.
Image credits: lizzo/TikTok
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“The truth hurts, right? Here’s the truth behind your @chilis jingle: using the flesh and bones of an animal that was violently killed as an ‘instrument’ is beyond grotesque. What happened to you?”
The criticism stood out because Lizzo and PETA had previously been closely aligned.
Back in 2022, PETA celebrated the singer’s vegan lifestyle and featured her hit song Good as Hell in a campaign encouraging people to adopt plant-based diets.
At the time, Lizzo was regularly sharing vegan meals with followers and was praised by the organization for promoting cruelty-free eating.
Despite the criticism, Lizzo said the Chili’s partnership reflected her love of food
Speaking about the partnership, she explained that the commercial was meant to showcase her personality as a food lover rather than position her as a health advocate.
“I think that I’m very sensitive about the way I deliver personal news to the world,” she told Billboard.
She acknowledged that her appearance in a rib-focused commercial would have surprised many people if she had never addressed her decision to stop being vegan.
“It would have been super jarring for me to be a vegan in 2021, and then 2026, I’m eating a big old rib and playing a rib flute,” she explained.
Lizzo also joked that if she had not become a musician, she probably would have been a food influencer.
The criticism came after Lizzo stopped being vegan in 2024 and later explained the reason
Image credits: lizzo/TikTok
Although many people still associate her with veganism, Lizzo publicly revealed in late 2024 that she was no longer following a vegan diet.
The singer said the change began after a trip to Japan.
“When I got to Japan, I was in awe at how clean and delicious their food was,” she explained in a video.
She said trying foods that included animal protein led her to look more closely at how different diets affected her body.
“After tests and research, I found that animal proteins helped me have more energy, lose weight, and helped with my mental fog,” Lizzo said.
She stressed that she still believed veganism offered health benefits.
“I do believe that the vegan diet is still the healthiest diet to have,” she explained.
Image credits: lizzo/TikTok
At the same time, she said she wanted to be honest about what was working for her personally.
“I’m aware how people could take this and how it could make them feel. But I’d rather be honest and share my story in my own words.”
Lizzo also made it clear that she does not judge how other people choose to eat.
“Whether you're vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, white meat-only or fully carnivorous, I'm not going to judge you,” she said.
“Do what's best for you in your life at that moment.”
The controversy sparked a larger discussion among viewers
Image credits: lizzo/TikTok
Some people argued that Lizzo had never been an animal rights activist and had simply followed a plant-based diet for health reasons.
“She wasn’t vegan; she just ate a plant-based diet. I’m glad she did, but she didn’t really care for the cause,” one commenter wrote.
“She wasn’t vegan. Seems to have been vegetarian,” another person added.
Others pointed out that her influence mattered because of her large platform.
“Because it can help the vegan movement to have a vegan celeb on our side. If they have millions of followers, it can be influential in a good way,” one person argued.
“Because like it or not, celebrity culture is real and people listen to what they have to say,” another wrote.
Some critics questioned why anyone was still paying close attention to the singer’s diet choices.
“It’s 2026. It feels like it’s been half a decade since anyone gave a shit about Lizzo,” one commenter wrote.
Another added, “Why do we expect celebrities to have any dignity? They love nothing more than to stay relevant. Funny thing is, most crashes as hard as they break out.”
"This is gonna get meme'd so hard," wrote one netizen
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