Three former dancers have filed a civil action against the Grammy-winning musician and her production firm in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleging sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment. Ariana Davis, Crystal Williams, and Noel Rodriguez, the plaintiffs, have made a number of accusations, including sexual, racial, and religious harassment, prejudice against people with disabilities, assault, and wrongful detention.
The dancing team leader, Shirleyne Quigley, as well as Melissa Vivian Jefferson, also known as Lisso, her production business Big Grarl Big Touring Inc., and other parties are named in the lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages.
The charges in the lawsuit have not received a fast response from Lisso’s attorneys.
The petition claims that after giving a performance at a music festival in Amsterdam, Lisso and her group took part in a presentation with a sexual theme in a club in the city’s iconic Red Light District. Lisso is accused of leading chants that continuously pressured dancers to touch one of the performers while they were naked.
In the end, the chorus became too loud, and Ms. Davis gave in to pressure to stop the chant, according to the lawsuit. The plaintiffs were horrified by the disrespect Lisso displayed toward her coworkers and other attendees, particularly those she had employed.
In addition, Lisso, a proponent of body acceptance, is charged with bullying Davis into gaining weight after making accusations that she was not fully committed to her duty as a dancer. The complaint states that Davis was expelled from a meeting in May during which Lisso gave feedback on the dancers’ performances.
Shirleyne Quigley, a former judge for the reality competition “Lisso’s Watch Out for the Big Grarls,” is accused of forcing her Christian ideals on the dancers. Quigley is said to have said in court documents that Davis was a “unbeliever” and that “No job will prevent me from talking about the Lord.”
