Is sp*z a slur? Twitter debate ensues as Beyoncé changes ableist Renaissance lyric, a month after Lizzo's controversy

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles sparked controversy when she used an ableist slur on her new track, Heated, from her latest album, Renaissance. In the lyrics of the song, the singer used the slur "sp*z" multiple times. The controversy comes a month after singer-songwriter Lizzo received flak over her usage of the same slur in a song.

Knowles’ track, which she co-wrote with Drake, used the slur twice in the following part of the lyrics:

“Sp*zzin' on that a**, sp*z on that a**.”

This received a lot of flak online from advocates for the disabled community, following which the 28-times Grammy-winning artist took to Instagram to comment on her creative process for the album. In the caption of the post, Beyoncé mentioned:

“My intention was to create a safe place, a place without judgment. A place to be free of perfectionism and overthinking. A place to scream, release, feel freedom.”

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Beyoncé to remove ableist slur from Heated

Later on August 1, CNN confirmed that Beyoncé was set to remove the slur from her lyrics. A representative of the singer told the publication that “the word, not used intentionally in a harmful way, will be replaced."

Similar to Beyoncé’s approach, Lizzo had previously removed the lyrics from her track Grrrls. After the backlash, Lizoo took to her social media and expressed that it was never her intention to “promote a derogatory language.” She further mentioned:

“This is the result of me listening and taking action. As an influential artist, I’m dedicated to being part of the change I’ve been waiting to see in the world.”

On Twitter, Lizzo’s statement had received over 280,000 likes as of now. While Lizzo clarified that it was not intention, the original lyrics of the track included:

“Hold my bag, b**ch (girls)/ Hold my bag/ Do you see this s**t? I’ma sp*z/ I’m about to knock somebody out (girls).”

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What does sp*z mean and how is it derogatory?

In the African-American version of spoken English, the term "sp*z" means "to fight" or "to go crazy." However, according to the Cambridge dictionary, the term also refers to a "stupid person." They also mentioned that the term originated from the word "spastic," which is a derogatory term to refer to people with cerebral palsy. The term can possibly refer to the spasms such an individual would have to face due to their condition.

Due to its derogatory nature, in the differently-abled community, the term is considered to be a slur. Furthermore, since the derogatory interpretation of the word targets differently-abled individuals, the usage of the term also promotes a sense of ableism (prejudice against differently-abled individuals.)

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Beyoncé’s usage of the ableist term "sp*z" and her decision to remove the lyric spark debate amongst netizens

When some Twitter users came to know about the original lyrics, which used the slur twice, they expressed their massive disappointment in the singer. A legion of tweets claimed that they had just brought up the negativity surrounding the usage of the term last month with Lizzo.

However, there have been tweets that expressed why the two pop stars should have never changed the lyric, as the term’s meaning in African-American lingo is far from being a slur. Meanwhile, a few tweets further expressed that Beyoncé’s use of the term in her lyrics had a completely different meaning and could not be considered a slur.

There were also a significant number of netizens who praised the 40-year-old singer for her decision to remove the lyrics following the backlash.