‘I Wanted to Treat Ya’ll’: Lizzo Buys Michigan ER Workers Lunch Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

Singer Lizzo is showing her appreciation to some of the nation’s health-care workers. Hospitals are required to stay open during the nationwide coronavirus pandemic, and for emergency staff workers that may mean little if any time for lunch. The “Truth Hurts” hitmaker gave back to her childhood community, and sent lunch to the emergency room workers at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit on Monday, March 30.

The Detroit native sent a video message to the workers at the Henry Ford Hospital on March 30 to show her gratitude for the people working around the clock to help fight the COVID-19 virus. The hospital tweeted her video to their business page and thanked the singer for her generous donation.

Lizzo sends food to the ER staff at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. @HenryFordNews/Twitter

“I just want to say thank you so much for all that you’re doing during this pandemic. It’s definitely not easy and you guys are putting yourselves on the front lines. And because of that, I wanted to treat ya’ll to a meal,” Lizzo said in her video.

The staff at Henry Ford Hospital responded to her message by saying, “#Lizzo, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you so much for making our day brighter with your generosity.”

The Detroit Health Department reported that 1,804 people have tested positive for the infectious disease in the Motorcity, and a total of 50 virus-related deaths have occurred as of Monday.

Detroit’s Henry Ford Hospital is not the only hospital that has benefited from Lizzo’s food donations. The 31-year-old artist had lunch delivered to the emergency room department at the University of Washington and the University of Minnesota on March 30.

Lizzo shares that is she going to meditate on Instagram in the hopes of spreading healing around the world. @lizzobeeating/Instagram

A representative for the Grammy Award winning singer told The Seattle Times, “She sent several hospitals food that were hit really hard for staff working around the clock. She is planning to send more food to hospitals as well.” Lizzo seemingly wants to ease the pain and anxiety people are feeling around the world due to the pandemic. She flooded her Instagram account with videos of her encouraging others to meditate with her during these tough times.

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Back to top