Originally posted on Vocal, August 2023
On August 1st, 2023, hip-hop singer, Lizzo, was reported to have been sued by former employees for sexual harassment, body-shaming and abuse of power, among other charges. As soon as I heard the news, my reaction was to look at her natal chart and what I found made a lot of sense while also provoking some interesting questions.
Lizzo Natal Chart Analysis
Unsurprisingly, she is a Leo Rising. The lion is a symbol of royalty and stardom. Those born under this sign are confident to a fault and love to be the center of attention. Lizzo's whole platform is based around self-love, which her fans interpret as a positive message, but to critics, she comes off as obnoxious and narcissistic, the shadow side of a Leo Ascendant.
Leo is ruled by the Sun, center of the solar system, making it the chart ruler. Lizzo's Sun is located in Taurus, a sensual and pleasure-loving earth sign ruled by the planet Venus. A typical trope about Taurus is their love of food. Lizzo's URL on both Twitter and Instagram is literally "lizzobeeating." Despite the negative attention people of her weight often receive, she is unabashedly confident in her sexuality. Her Taurus Sun is conjunct Jupiter, further illustrating how she is unafraid to enjoy herself and indulge in the pleasures of life. The biggest planet in our solar system, Jupiter enlarges everything it touches. And Lizzo is BIG, in more ways than one. She has a big body, yes, but also a big personality and some would say a big ego. Jupiter placements can sometimes make a person seem a bit "too much." Lizzo has built her entire career out of all of these things. So, it makes sense that her Sun, Jupiter and Mercury, planet of communication, should be located in the 10th house, the house of work and public image, as well as the sun's highest peak. This showcases Lizzo's ambition while also indicating her as someone who is destined for fame and fortune.
Digging a bit deeper, we can look to her Virgo Moon, which is located in the 2nd house of money and finances. As her Taurus Sun already shows, living comfortably is important to her. Like Taurus, Virgo is an earth sign associated with the material world, but ruled by Mercury, planet of the mind. Virgo is known for it's good organizational skills but also, for it's neuroticism. It is possible that Lizzo is more anxious and self-doubting than how she appears, especially in terms of career. As for the shadow side, Virgo's perfectionism and love of neatness can sometimes lead to "control freak" tendencies. Lizzo's Virgo Moon is square her Venus in Gemini, a more flirty and sociable sign. Ruling her 10th house and located in the 11th house of friends and supporters, it highlights her large and diverse fanbase. This aspect indicates several things; conflicting relationship needs, personal insecurities, struggles with food, a personal life that might alienate her fan base. and potential problems getting along with other women. She also has an Aquarius Mars in the 7th house, and while this could show an aggressive personality, especially in terms of sexuality, it can also indicate aggressive partners and an overall aggressive attitude that people might have towards her.
I do see that there is a grand cross, a huge square, between her Taurus planets, her Leo Ascendant, her Aquarius Mars and her Pluto in Scorpio. The "god of the underworld," Pluto is associated with power and the darkest elements of the human psyche. This could potentially indicate a person who uses manipulation and underhanded tactics to get their way. However, it could also indicate a good person whose been forced to experience the darker sides of life. With Pluto in the 4th house, this could be a troubling home or family life: a quick glance at Lizzo's Wikipedia biography tells me that she lost her father at 21 and lived out of a car for a year while she tried to make it in the music industry. In any case, this aspect can indicate power struggles that lead to explosions of anger and rage, whether from her or towards her.
Lizzo's Transits
I was more interested to see Lizzo's transits. Jupiter is currently in the sign of Taurus, having recently made a conjunction with both her Sun and natal Jupiter, and currently applying to her natal Mercury. This is interesting, to me, because the "Jupiter Return" is generally interpreted as a good thing, a time of luck and positivity. The same thing is said about Jupiter's conjunction to the Sun and/or Ascendant ruler. Any generic interpretation you'll find online about Jupiter in the 10th house will say something like, "Good luck and serendipity in your career, expect a promotion or raise." But while Jupiter in the 10th house is certainly attracting attention to Lizzo's career, the attention is overwhelmingly negative. Why is this?
It could be that Jupiter rules her 8th house (Pisces), the house of death and "other people's money" so it makes sense that she is being sued. The 8th house is about debt, as well as punishment, which could be one reason why these "positive" Jupiter transits aren't so positive for her. Perhaps, we should also consider the grand cross, because Jupiter isn't only aspecting her Taurus planets but her Ascendant, Mars and Pluto as well. Squares and oppositions are generally considered to be negative aspects, especially when conjunct a malefic planet such as Mars and Pluto. With Jupiter square Mars and Pluto specifically, it is likely that people are challenging her (Mars in the 7th house) and that her private life is being exposed (Pluto in the 4th). Jupiter in Taurus square her Leo Ascendant can signify "too much of a good thing:" her excessive pleasure seeking and lack of boundaries will lead to her downfall. If anything, this is a good lesson on taking an individual's whole chart into consideration before making assumptions: general interpretations of singular transits rarely tell the whole story.
It also worth noting that Uranus, a planet of shocking change and upheaval, is co-present with Jupiter in the sign of Taurus, and making a nearly exact conjunct with her Midheaven, this transit has caused a dramatic shake-up of how she is viewed in the public eye. While adored by fans as an icon for body-positivity and sexual empowerment, allegations of body-shaming and sexual harassment have rapidly disrupted her career, radically overturning her carefully-crafted image.
Meanwhile, Venus Retrograde is conjunct Lizzo's Ascendant. Venus conjunct the Ascendant is typically considered to be a very positive transit. Most descriptions online would describe it as a good time for romance and social gatherings, a time where your attractiveness is enhanced. But when Retrograde, the meaning of this transit is a lot different (as I know myself from experience). As I wrote in my article on Venus in Retrograde, Venus in Leo is a bit of a diva, much like Lizzo herself, and when retrograde, these qualities are likely to take a dark turn. Venus in Leo craves attention but when retrograde, that attention is likely to be negative. I also wrote that people would be "exposed as narcissists" and because Leo is a sign associated with fame, this transit could "subvert our ideas about celebrity culture." It looks like overall, this Venus in Retrograde transit has been about taking celebrities off their pedestal, and Venus in Retrograde conjunct Lizzo's Leo Ascendant, in particular, marks her as one of the celebrities whose pedestal will be taken away. It is worth noting that Venus rules Lizzo's 10th house (Taurus) of career as well as her 3rd house (Libra), the house of communication including tabloids and gossip.
Lizzo is 35 years old, which means she's in a 12th house profection year. 12th house projection years are often uncomfortable, in general, as the 12th house is associated with isolation, hidden enemies, and self-undoing. Her hidden enemies could be the former employees who've sued her, or the journalists exposing it to the world, but her greatest enemy might also be herself, leaving her isolated and alone. Lizzo's 12th house (Cancer) in particular is ruled by her (Virgo) Moon in the 2nd house of money and finance. The Moon is conjunct the South Node and opposite the (Pisces) North Node in the 8th house, the house associated with debt and other people's money. From the perspective of modern Western astrology, a Virgo South Node in the 2nd house and a Pisces North Node in the 8th house could be interpreted as a lesson in giving to others, rather than hoarding all the wealth for yourself - and if she loses, she'll have to be giving her money to others whether she likes it or not.
As Lizzo's profected ruler for this year, transits made by the Moon will be especially significant for her. The media first reported news about her lawsuit on August 1st, in the midst of a Full Moon in Aquarius. Full Moons often correspond with climactic events (not always positive ones) and this Full Moon happened to be conjunct her Mars, an aspect indicative of being challenged by others, a combative attitude from the people in her life. Remember that Mars is part of a grand cross in her natal chart, meaning that the Full Moon is part of a grand cross, as well, squaring her natal Sun, Jupiter, Mercury, and Pluto, while opposing her Ascendant, provoking power struggles and a hit to both her ego & her career.
Furthermore, a very quick glance at Lizzo's Solar Return shows a Leo Moon (her profected ruler) in the 8th house, overlapping her natal Ascendant. The Moon is square the Sun, making for a climatic year. Meanwhile, the 12th house (Sagittarius) in the Solar Return chart is ruled by Jupiter, making it her profected ruler, causing the Jupiter transit to be all the more significant, especially regarding 12th house themes. The Solar Return 10th house (Libra) of career is ruled by Venus, which located in the 6th house, is not in very good condition. In other words, the Solar Return also emphasizes the 8th (debt, taxes, law suits, other people's money) and 12th (hidden enemies, isolation, self-undoing) house themes that are already highlighted.
Conclusion
I am sure many of you are curious about my opinion on the allegations. While I was never a huge fan of Lizzo's music (which is not to say I am a hater either), I understand that to many people, she is an icon for body positivity & black female empowerment, and I've appreciated her place in pop culture because of it. However, given the number of people (both former and current employers, who've worked for her in a number of different capacities) unaffiliated with the lawsuit who have come forward to corroborate the charges, it unfortunately looks to me like the allegations are probably true. That said, I do not have all the answers and am open to changing my mind if new evidence presents itself.
Regardless of whether or not she is guilty, however, from an astrological perspective, this case has been an interesting lesson on how important it is to consider the individual's full chart when interpreting an aspect or transit, rather than rely on the isolated interpretations we find online (or even in books). While Jupiter and Venus are generally considered to be positive planets, their current transits have not been so positive for Lizzo!
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