Not only is the song Lizzo’s first single in two years, it’s a collab between two artists that fans have been waiting to see happen. The pair had already starred together in 2019’s Hustlers, but this is their first time actually hopping on a track together — and it’s safe to say that Rumors is nothing short of a bop. The song’s triumphant horn-heavy hook perfectly compliments Lizzo’s signature sing-rapping, and of course there’s that fire verse from Cardi about “fake news” in the entertainment industry and how she continues to rise above the lies that have been published about her.
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But a closer look at the video reveals that it’s much more than just a catchy tune that flips the middle finger to the celebrity gossip mill — it’s also an ode to both late 90s nostalgia and Black women’s bodies.
Directed by Ukrainian music video director Tanu Muino (who was also behind the visuals for Cardi B's Up, Normani's Wild Side and Lil Nas X’s Montero), the video takes place on a gold-plated heaven-like set filled with ancient Greek iconography, an obvious nod to the 1997 Disney classic animated film Hercules.
Lizzo and her group of curvy, stunning, Black women backup dancers appear to represent the five Muses, the goddesses who make up the musical backbone of Hercules. The original muses were voiced by singers Lillias White, Vanéese Y. Thomas, Cheryl Freeman, LaChanze, and Roz Ryan, all Black women who were selected for the film mostly due to their work on Broadway. And with Disney announcing its plans to move forward with a live-action version of the animated film, many fans are already looking at this video as a great audition for Lizzo.
"I am body goals, yeah," Lizzo raps in the song’s second verse, a line that speaks to the love she has for a body that society has viciously picked apart ever since she stepped on the scene. In “Rumors,” she flaunts it in all of its glory, wrapping her body in a gold satin toga with a split up the front, thigh-high gladiator boots on her feet. “If you thought that I was ratchet with my ass hanging out / just wait until the summer when they let me out the house” she sings, with a “b*tch!” at the end for good measure.
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Cardi, for her part, is also dressed as a Greek goddess, while proudly sporting her bare baby bump adorned with gold chains. The grammy-winning rapper announced she was pregnant with her second baby at the BET Awards back in June, and has not shied away from showing off her bump since. Just like with her first pregnancy, Cardi is not afraid to show her pregnant body, something that many stars have felt pressure to hide in the past, especially while performing.
And aside from the song being a surefire summer smash, both women look gorgeous in the video and are having fun while doing it! WATCH Lizzo & Cardi B "Rumors":