Overview
- Bitch, which was released on June 5, sold about 2,649 copies in its first week and registered roughly 2.7 million on‑demand streams according to Luminate data reported by Rolling Stone, with second‑week sales falling to about 650 units and the record missing the Billboard 200.
- Major music critics gave the album generally poor reviews, with outlets such as The Independent, The Guardian, Financial Times and Rolling Stone rating it around two to two‑and‑a‑half stars and describing its tone as disjointed compared with Lizzo’s 2022 release Special.
- Lizzo has publicly attributed the weak debut to the music business’s shift from radio to streaming, saying streaming reduced how fans discover her music and that her profile suffered from what she called a public attack on her career.
- Industry figures questioned that explanation, arguing artists can still reach audiences through streaming and radio campaigns, and they urged traditional promotion and fan engagement rather than blaming platform change alone.
- The album’s performance comes against the backdrop of ongoing legal fights from 2023 in which three former dancers accused Lizzo of misconduct; she has denied the claims, said some were dismissed by a judge, and has vowed to contest remaining allegations, a factor observers say may affect public perception and the artist’s future commercial strategy.