The “Rumors” are true: Lizzo‘s new album has arrived.
On Friday (June 5), the Grammy-winning pop star unleashed Bitch, her first studio album since 2022’s Special. The set’s lead single, “Don’t Make Me Love U,” arrived on March 20, with its title track following May 1.
The title of Lizzo’s new album — which houses songs such as “She Stole My Man,” “Whose Hair Is This” and “Sexy Ladies” — is certainly eye-catching. For the “Truth Hurts” singer, naming her record an expletive was an act of reclamation.
“Reclaiming the word ‘b—h’ is power. It’s taking a label once used to diminish women and turning it into a declaration of confidence and unapologetic self-love,” she said in a statement. “So many incredible women in music have used the word for positivity like Meredith Brooks and Missy Elliott. It was only fitting to name my album Bitch because it has become my favorite word when using it on my own terms, and because I am 100% that b—h!”
At one point, Lizzo had an entirely different name for the project. Back in February, she released the then-lead single and title track for Love In Real Life, which was originally set to serve as her fifth studio LP. After telling Vulture that Love In Real Life “just wasn’t what I was feeling right now,” Lizzo later clarified to Billboard that “[Bitch] is technically the same album… I just changed the name. The music is the same.”
In the interim between pausing the Love In Real Life rollout and launching Bitch, Lizzo returned to her hip-hop roots for her My Face Hurts from Smiling mixtape. Featuring collaborations with Doja Cat and SZA, the rollicking tape also included freestyles over 2025 rap hits like PLUTO & YK Niece’s “Whim Whamiee.”
Lizzo has made herself virtually inescapable in the lead-up to Bitch. She explained why she refuses to settle her career-shifting sexual harassment lawsuit on CBS Mornings (May 4), cracked jokes and whipped out her signature flute at The Roast of Kevin Hart on Netflix (May 10), and lambasted social media algorithms for “destroying the music industry” (May 12).
The Detroit-born star’s last studio album found her helping the world dance its way out of the pandemic. “About Damn Time,” the lead single from Special, hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won the Grammy Award for record of the year. Two other songs from that project hit the all-genre singles chart: “2 B Loved (Am I Ready)” (No. 55) and “Special” (with SZA, No. 52).
Notably, Bitch arrives the same weekend Scary Movie, for which Lizzo recorded an original song, hits theaters. Two weeks ago (May 22), she linked up with Sexyy Red for “Hoes,” which will appear on the official soundtrack for the horror-comedy film.
Stream Bitch now.
