Attention, Joe Biden: Lizzo Wants You To Earn The Black Vote

Singer, rapper, and flutist Lizzo shared a musical message for Joe Biden in regards to the black vote. The “Truth Hurts” rapper took to Instagram on June 1 to share a video from her TikTok account that directly addressed the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee in the 2020 election against Donald Trump. In the clip where she flexes her vocals, Lizzo extends her left hand outward to signify that she’s holding “the black vote” and croons two lyrical lines: “You gonna have to do more than just get it, you gonna have to go out and earn it.”

In the post, captioned simply with a tag of Biden’s Instagram handle, Lizzo ends the song with an all-knowing look directed into the camera. Her TikTok post comes after Biden came under fire for remarking to The Breakfast Club co-host Charlamagne tha God that if he were undecided over whether to vote for him or Trump, then he “ain’t black” in an interview on May 22. The presidential nominee has since apologized for the gaffe. “I shouldn’t have been such a wise guy," Biden said, per Reuters. "I shouldn’t have been so cavalier."

Still, the remark drew criticism. Keith Boykin, CNN commentator, tweeted, “Yes, Biden is a much better choice for black people than racist Trump. But white people don’t get to tell black people what is black.” He then reiterated Lizzo’s aforementioned TikTok and added, “Biden still has to EARN our vote.” Adrianne Shropshire, BlackPAC executive director, also tweeted, “White politicians should probably refrain from defining Blackness for Black people. Just a thought.”

Given Biden’s vow to pick a female vice president, many have contended that he’ll need to choose a woman of color or risk the same path as Hillary Clinton, who didn’t match Barack Obama’s high turnout in cities with large black populations during the 2016 presidential election. "If he wants us to not just vote but bring our family and communities along in record numbers, he's got to put a woman of color on the ticket," Aimee Allison, She the People founder, told USA Today on May 20. "It's got to be part of the successful strategy in bringing the Democratic coalition together — firing us up, motivating us even in the middle of a pandemic — to get out the vote."

Lizzo’s TikTok isn’t the first time she’s been vocal about the presidential election. Last August, she called out the “ageism” surrounding Bernie Sanders’ campaign and said in now-deleted tweets, per Insider, “I hear a lot of about Bernie Sanders being ‘too old’ to run or be president... but we've currently got a 73-year old in office so drop the ageism shit and just listen to what he's got to say.” Lizzo also said it wasn’t an endorsement but “a call to action for us to focus and get unified as a party.” She also called Elizabeth Warren a “dope candidate.”