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Gen Z Were Struggling To Wrap Their Heads Around ’00s Beauty Standards, So Lizzo Came In To Share An Important Message
When older people used to talk about life in their times, the youth could roll their eyes, safe in the knowledge that these were just memories obscured by the passage of time. But for the last two decades, the combination of the internet and digital photos has made seeing the past more straightforward than ever before.
So when Generation Z learned what some considered “thick” (or “thicc,” to use modern parlance) in the early 2000s, many expressed outright disbelief at the body standards of the time. So American rapper Lizzo made a TikTok that ended up going viral to educate the youth on body issues and how society talks about them.
More info: TikTok
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Younger internet user shared their disbelief at what people thought “thick” was in the 00s
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So older users had to show them screenshots of older media to prove their point
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Lizzo put out a TikTok giving gen z some advice on how to look at body image discourse
Image credits: lizzo
“So right now there’s a thread on Twitter. A reminder of the women we used to consider thick in the 2000s and this is LisaRaye. As you know, LisaRaye is beautiful. In the early 2000s, she was considered the definition of thick. Another one of our 2000s thick icons is J.Lo, whose booty was super duper duper praised for being juicy and big and thick and dump-truckish.”
Image credits: lizzo
“As well as these video vixens right here who were notoriously known for being thick, to the point they thought their bodies were fake, people were accusing them of having fake bodies back in the early days. However, I noticed in the comments that people don’t believe these tweets. There are people who are like, ‘Y’all just be saying anything. This isn’t true. This isn’t thick.’ And it’s important to note that a lot of these people were not born yet. Or they were babies in this era.”
Image credits: lizzo
“I’m not here to convince you that beauty standards were different. And I’m not here to convince you that this was considered fat in the early 2000s and that this beautiful body was considered unhealthy in the early 2000s. What I am here to do is just remark on how quickly the conversation in culture can change. All it takes is 20 years to completely erase an ideal, a thought, a pattern, a behavior, and the way we treat people. The way we talk about people. And that’s important to remember moving forward. To avoid erasure and also to get rid of some of this toxic behavior that we praise in culture now.”
Image credits: lizzo
“It doesn’t take much to reshift a narrative and to change a paradigm. Being an early pioneer in the body-positive movement and watching it evolve to body neutrality is humbling. It’s an honor. Watching the definition of thick go from J.Lo to Beyoncé, to Tacarra, to Precious Lee has been a dream to watch. This is a reminder that there’s always going to be a new conversation. There’s always going to be a new fight, and every movement offsets the next movement. The status quo is meant to be pushed, it’s meant to be evolved. So, if you feel like the outlier, or if you feel like you’re not like everybody else, keep being yourself and watch the world catch up with you.”
You can watch the full video here
@lizzoFUN FACT: EVERYBODY IS A BODY✨♬ original sound – lizzo
Commenters shared their appreciation for her words and gave some more examples
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What do you think ?
Troy Parr 2 years ago
In the UK being called "Thick" has nothing to do with body shape. "Thick" has been an insult to call someone absolutely stupid for far longer than I can remember... Elaborated on in many ways too. Such as, "He's as thick as two short planks of wood!" or, "She's so thick you couldn't any thicker!" or. "as thick as a brick" and so on...
Mariele Scherzinger 2 years ago
In the early 2000, TV shows such as Friends and Ally McBeal were extremely popular. The actresses were contractually forced to starve themselves to a size 0 or got fired. The pressure on women to present an undersized version of femininity is still real. Hollywood still enforces this to a lot of its female stars who seem to become smaller and blonder with every new movie. However, the Kardashians and other "influencers" have added a countermovement towards oversized feminity. (Should we praise them for it?) I have a feeling that these days, you are shamed if you have neither - just a normal mid-weight body. After all, not everyone has the time or the money to go to the gym daily.
Nikki Sevven 2 years ago
I don't believe we should praise the Kardashians and their ilk. They set a standard for female beauty that cannot be achieved by the overwhelming majority of women without multiple cosmetic surgeries. Even THEY didn't achieve it without multiple cosmetic surgeries. That's not a standard; it's a mutation.
Load More Replies...
Tyranamar Seuss 2 years ago
Fortunately I was warned about this. A friend's mother told me it was very important not to over pluck bc when you're older they thin. Happy to say I still have eyebrows as a result.
Load More Replies...
LokisLilButterknife 2 years ago (edited)
I’ve always wanted to see photographs of the men and women who called Beyoncé and Kate Winslet thick. My God, women can’t seem to win. As a woman who works out and plays sports there is no way in hell that I’m squeezing myself into a size 2 or 4 without looking like a sausage roll.
Nikki Sevven 2 years ago
Not every woman is destined to be a size 2, though, because we are not homogenous. I'm 160 cm tall, and feel I look best at a size 5 or 7 (US). Any lower and I start to look gaunt. Any higher and I look chunky. I'm short and I have a small frame, so gaining or losing 5 kg makes a huge difference in my appearance. The size that looks proportional on me would make a 175 cm tall woman look emaciated, and we wouldn't even notice if she gained 5 kg.
Load More Replies... Nikki Sevven 2 years ago
Repeat after me, ladies. Women. Can't. Win. In my life, I have at various times been a US size 0 up to a US size 9. Stress put me at size 0 and it wasn't healthy, but all I heard was, "You look great!" Disability put me at size 9, also not healthy for my frame, but all I heard was, "Wow, you've put on a lot of weight." Why TF are you even commenting on my body?! You're not concerned; you're a judgmental åss. Full stop. End of line. STOP.
Jake stenhouse 2 years ago
Disappointed. I was expecting an article on the IQ levels of celebrities
LokisLilButterknife 2 years ago
I knew there was going to be another person from the UK reading this article. Hah hah, I thought the same thing at first.
Load More Replies...
Agnes Jekyll 2 years ago
Anyone remember when Yasmeen Ghauri said that she couldn't model because she would have been considered fat, or when Coca Rocha was fired because she went from a size 2 to a size 4? in the 80s, a study showed that girls as young as 12 were dieting. Ten years ago, girls were dieting as young as 7. I hope things are better now.
Paddling Panda 2 years ago
I grew up in the '80s and started restricting my food when I was 13. Magazines used to list the specs of their cover models, including measurements, height, weight. So if a 5'10" model was 115 lbs, surely at 5'6", I needed to be 100 to 105 lbs, right? It was a sick Era and I'm really happy that Gen Z has a healthier outlook on their bodies. Eating disorders are hell
Load More Replies...
Wysteria_Rose 2 years ago
My counselor was discussing my self-esteem issues with my weight. She said, "wait, you're 31 right?" I said yes and she went, "Ohh, you're from the time when skinny was considered 'overweight' and only size zeroes were actually 'thin.' That's where this is probably coming from." And I was like, "Huh. Yeah, I guess you're right." It's still something that hangs on even years later.
Me 2 years ago
Same for me. I started my first diet when I was 10 and now that I'm 40 i still feel guilty when I eat sweets or big portions every.f*ckin.time. I was never really fat, just curves, by the way. Still learning to accept my body.
Load More Replies... 
Princess Jade 2 years ago
I was an insecure teenager in the early 90's during that entire supermodel obsession, I actually thought the heroine chic thing looked good :/
Troy Parr 2 years ago
In the UK being called "Thick" has nothing to do with body shape. "Thick" has been an insult to call someone absolutely stupid for far longer than I can remember... Elaborated on in many ways too. Such as, "He's as thick as two short planks of wood!" or, "She's so thick you couldn't any thicker!" or. "as thick as a brick" and so on...
Mariele Scherzinger 2 years ago
In the early 2000, TV shows such as Friends and Ally McBeal were extremely popular. The actresses were contractually forced to starve themselves to a size 0 or got fired. The pressure on women to present an undersized version of femininity is still real. Hollywood still enforces this to a lot of its female stars who seem to become smaller and blonder with every new movie. However, the Kardashians and other "influencers" have added a countermovement towards oversized feminity. (Should we praise them for it?) I have a feeling that these days, you are shamed if you have neither - just a normal mid-weight body. After all, not everyone has the time or the money to go to the gym daily.
Nikki Sevven 2 years ago
I don't believe we should praise the Kardashians and their ilk. They set a standard for female beauty that cannot be achieved by the overwhelming majority of women without multiple cosmetic surgeries. Even THEY didn't achieve it without multiple cosmetic surgeries. That's not a standard; it's a mutation.
Load More Replies... Tyranamar Seuss 2 years ago
Fortunately I was warned about this. A friend's mother told me it was very important not to over pluck bc when you're older they thin. Happy to say I still have eyebrows as a result.
Load More Replies... LokisLilButterknife 2 years ago (edited)
I’ve always wanted to see photographs of the men and women who called Beyoncé and Kate Winslet thick. My God, women can’t seem to win. As a woman who works out and plays sports there is no way in hell that I’m squeezing myself into a size 2 or 4 without looking like a sausage roll.
Nikki Sevven 2 years ago
Not every woman is destined to be a size 2, though, because we are not homogenous. I'm 160 cm tall, and feel I look best at a size 5 or 7 (US). Any lower and I start to look gaunt. Any higher and I look chunky. I'm short and I have a small frame, so gaining or losing 5 kg makes a huge difference in my appearance. The size that looks proportional on me would make a 175 cm tall woman look emaciated, and we wouldn't even notice if she gained 5 kg.
Load More Replies... Nikki Sevven 2 years ago
Repeat after me, ladies. Women. Can't. Win. In my life, I have at various times been a US size 0 up to a US size 9. Stress put me at size 0 and it wasn't healthy, but all I heard was, "You look great!" Disability put me at size 9, also not healthy for my frame, but all I heard was, "Wow, you've put on a lot of weight." Why TF are you even commenting on my body?! You're not concerned; you're a judgmental åss. Full stop. End of line. STOP.
Jake stenhouse 2 years ago
Disappointed. I was expecting an article on the IQ levels of celebrities
LokisLilButterknife 2 years ago
I knew there was going to be another person from the UK reading this article. Hah hah, I thought the same thing at first.
Load More Replies... Agnes Jekyll 2 years ago
Anyone remember when Yasmeen Ghauri said that she couldn't model because she would have been considered fat, or when Coca Rocha was fired because she went from a size 2 to a size 4? in the 80s, a study showed that girls as young as 12 were dieting. Ten years ago, girls were dieting as young as 7. I hope things are better now.
Paddling Panda 2 years ago
I grew up in the '80s and started restricting my food when I was 13. Magazines used to list the specs of their cover models, including measurements, height, weight. So if a 5'10" model was 115 lbs, surely at 5'6", I needed to be 100 to 105 lbs, right? It was a sick Era and I'm really happy that Gen Z has a healthier outlook on their bodies. Eating disorders are hell
Load More Replies... Wysteria_Rose 2 years ago
My counselor was discussing my self-esteem issues with my weight. She said, "wait, you're 31 right?" I said yes and she went, "Ohh, you're from the time when skinny was considered 'overweight' and only size zeroes were actually 'thin.' That's where this is probably coming from." And I was like, "Huh. Yeah, I guess you're right." It's still something that hangs on even years later.
Me 2 years ago
Same for me. I started my first diet when I was 10 and now that I'm 40 i still feel guilty when I eat sweets or big portions every.f*ckin.time. I was never really fat, just curves, by the way. Still learning to accept my body.
Load More Replies... Princess Jade 2 years ago
I was an insecure teenager in the early 90's during that entire supermodel obsession, I actually thought the heroine chic thing looked good :/
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