If you’re one of the handful of pop culture luddites like me who were unfamiliar with Lizzo, I offer a brief introduction. She’s a 34-year-old internationally renowned singer, songwriter, rapper, Grammy winner, and oh-by-the-way, classically trained flutist.
She might also be called, and I don’t think she’d mind, a badass big Black woman. (She’s referred to herself as a big Black Woman—openly explaining how long it took her to love her body image.)
And now she’s driven some of the country’s far-right “influencers” to the edge of apoplexy. In their eyes, she’s an emblem of our national degradation. Why? Because she played James Madison’s crystal flute. In the Library of Congress. And later, briefly, on the stage during her act before thousands of her young fans.
Dressed in a skimpy sequiny garment, Lizzo carefully accepted the priceless instrument from the hands of a library curator. And then, joyfully, she sounded a note–and then trilled, while twerking her substantial tush—apparently, one of her customary moves.
How will the stature of President James Madison ever recover? American civilization is doomed, squeal the naysayers. And how on earth did this woman make her way into the Library of Congress (LOC) to perform this foundation-shattering act in the first place?
Answer: She was invited—by another badass Black woman (considerably smaller in size), the LOC’s librarian, Dr. Carla Hayden. I wrote about Dr. Hayden and the LOC previously. She’s an inspirational figure who came to President Obama’s attention when she headed the Baltimore library system, rebuilding it into what she called “the people’s university.”
As I noted in that post, when Hayden wondered aloud what she could bring to the LOC, Obama responded that he’d seen all the LOC’s treasures because he was the President. “What can you do to make sure that all these treasures are open to the general public?”
So that’s been part of her mandate since she began her ten-year term in 2016: to make the LOC and its hundreds of thousands of treasures more accessible to the public. Under her guidance, the LOC is a living library that speaks to generations old, young, and in between, and as diverse as America is.
When Hayden heard that Lizzo was planning to be in Washington, she tweeted to her about the LOC’s collection of 1700 flutes, which includes the priceless crystal one that had been made for James Madison—but never played by Madison or anyone else. Dolley Madison had carried it from the White House as the British entered the city in 1814. It became a family heirloom.
On the LOC blog, you can read all about the flute, one of 17 created by a French craftsman named Laurent that form part of the library’s collection. The article stresses that the library’s curators made sure it could be safely played without damage.
“This sort of thing is not as unusual as it might sound. Many of the Library’s priceless musical instruments are played now and again—even the five-stringed instruments by Antonio Stradivari.”
On this link, you can also watch and listen to Lizzo’s thrilling performance on a “more practical flute.” With the backdrop of that magnificent building, Lizzo transformed that “more practical flute” into one imbued with a bit of magic.
As April Slayton, the LOC blog writer, described:
“Cameras snapped and video rolled. For your friendly national library, this was a perfect moment to show a new generation how we preserve the country’s rich cultural heritage. The Library’s vision is that all Americans are connected to our holdings. We want people to see them.”
Similar care was given to transporting the Madison flute to Lizzo’s concert.
“When Library curator Carol Lynn Ward-Bamford walked the instrument onstage and handed it to Lizzo to a roar of applause, it was just the last, most visible step of our security package. This work by a team of backstage professionals enabled an enraptured audience to learn about the Library’s treasures in an exciting way.
“’As some of y’all may know I got invited to the Library of Congress,’ Lizzo said, after placing her own flute (named Sasha Flute) down on its sparkling pedestal, which had emerged minutes earlier from the center of the stage. Following the aforementioned, highly popular Twitter exchange between Lizzo the Librarian of Congress, the crowd knew what was coming.
“‘I want everybody to make some noise for James Madison’s crystal flute, y’all!’ They made more noise than the instrument, having been at the Library for 81 years, has been exposed to in quite some time. Maybe ever.
“She took it gingerly from Ward-Bamford’s hands, walked over to the mic and admitted: ‘I’m scared.’ She also urged the crowd to be patient. ‘It’s crystal, it’s like playing out of a wine glass!'”
Then she trilled—and twerked.
“’We just made history tonight!” she exclaimed. ‘Thank you to the Library of Congress for preserving our history and making history freaking cool! History is freaking cool, you guys!’”
This was not the history certain segments of the population want America’s school children to learn.
Forbes, which I think of as a fairly mainstream, business-oriented publication, ran two articles about the Lizzo brouhaha.
One piece bore the title “Lizzo Plays A 200-Year-Old Crystal Flute, Accidentally Summons A Swarm of Trolls.”
The writer quotes several of the snarlers. Jenna Ellis, a former Trump lawyer who might do well to lower her profile these days, called Lizzo’s performance “a desecration, purposefully, of America’s history.” Matt Walsh, a “right-wing influencer,” labeled it “a form of racial retribution, according to the woke left.” You get the idea.
The second Forbes article, “Why Lizzo Playing A Flute From The Library of Congress Is Important,” addressed some substantive issues.
“Lizzo bringing greater attention to instrumental music, and playing the flute as a highly popular entertainer is vital, especially for young children watching who might not be able to envision themselves as musicians.
“Participation in the arts is associated with an increase in academic achievement, enhanced cognitive skills, increased creative thinking, a greater sense of belonging in school, and perhaps most important, a greater compassion for others. According to The College Board, students in music performance and music appreciation scored 57 points higher on verbal and 43 points higher on math [on the SAT] than students with little arts participation.”
The writer points out that education budgets for music and art are generally small–even more so in schools in disadvantaged areas. A National Endowment for the Arts study found that at-risk kids who had minimal involvement in the arts were far less likely to go to college than those who’d had “intensive arts involvement” (48 percent compared to 71 percent).
“Moderate arts involvement matters to students, but greater exposure and involvement is more powerful and allows for lifetime benefits. Despite criticism from some circles, Lizzo is bringing much needed, large-scale, attention to instrumental music at a time when the nation needs it most. Moreover, her actions showcased the history of music and the Library of Congress’s larger collection for larger audiences across the nation.”
Role models matter. As I noted in my earlier post, Carla Hayden has said her love of books and learning was nurtured in no small measure by a book titled “Bright April” that was her first glimpse of a work about a little girl who looked like her.
How lovely it would be if some of the kids who were wowed by Lizzo’s discussion, playing, and introduction to “freaking cool history” were inspired to move in a new direction.
Sunny Hostin, one of the hosts on the TV program The View, observed about Lizzo:
“This is the promise of America. You have a slave’s [descendant] playing the 200-year-[old] flute by someone who was a slave master.”
“Racial retribution”? Good grief! If this is racial retribution, let’s be grateful that in 2022, the non-violent movement has been expanded by a powerful new symbol: a big, immensely talented Black woman joyfully, musically twerking.
Scary, huh?
Annie
PS: Preventing the Library of Congress’s funding from being slashed by small-minded Republicans is just another of the zillion reasons we must vote to elect Democratic majorities on November 8th!
annieasksyou... 
Love this post! I heard a snippet about the flute on morning drive time public radio had so many questions all of which and more are answered here — so thank you! I especially loved being able to see and hear her, too. Honestly, how could you not love this?
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So glad to hear that, Denise. How could you not love this—indeed!
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I hired Carla Hayden when I was Chair of the library system in Baltimore. She was a transformational leader and a wonderful person to work with for over 20 years. I thought you might enjoy the Englewood connection. Bob Hillman
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Wow!!!
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Hi, Bob. So good to hear from you—and thanks for this happy small world anecdote. You clearly made a decision that was beneficial not only for Baltimore, but for the entire nation. I became a Carla Hayden fan when I heard Chuck Rosenberg’s podcast interview with her, which inspired my blog post about her and her work at the LOC.
Hope you and your family are all well.
Cheers,
Annie
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I am one of the (handful?) of pop culture Luddites like me who was unfamiliar with Lizzo, crystal flutes, or that the Library of Congress had musical instruments. Thank you for this blog which slightly reduced my Luddite-ness.
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You’re welcome, Allan. And if you’re interested in learning more about the LOC’s treasures and programs, I note some in the “Bright April” post I linked to in this one.
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Thanks for this timely and educational blog post! I knew about Lizzo and her music, and had watched a video of her playing this historic flute. However, I very much appreciated your filling in some of the context and value of what the Library of Congress and Lizzo accomplished together.
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Hi, Will. Good to hear from you, and I’m gratified that you enjoyed the post. Based on what I’d learned about Carla Hayden previously, I wasn’t surprised that she’d do something creative and boundary-pushing, knowing any controversy would not overshadow the good publicity and the broader public benefit.
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Dr. Henry Lewis Gates stated what I think is obvious, that the election of Barack Obama produced a backlash as many successes by black citizens have. This is no exception.
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Yes, regrettably, it’s all too obvious. But I’ve written before about Black Americans’ determination to fight for our democracy—women especially—with so many obstacles confronting them. They inspire me.
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Wow! What a sound! Before now, I had never heard of a crystal flute, never mind that James Madison had once owned it. But he never played it himself? What was the point of having it made for him, then? Oh, well, this beautiful woman took command of it to thrill me with her trills. Thank you for this story.
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Hi, Jo. No; apparently Lizzo is the first one who’s ever played it. I don’t know whether Madison sought it; I suspect Laurent was trying to impress.
I hope it was clear that Lizzo just tried the crystal flute briefly in the LOC and her concert. The longer performance you heard was on a “more practical flute” from the library ‘s collection. So glad you enjoyed it!
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The his story! Plantation life in the 18th century. His story. He composed the first conception of a Constitution and a Bill of Rights and he also owned people. One can see him being gifted the flute to celebrate his love of music. I can also see a black man playing it in a small quartet at some soiree in the Dolly Madison White House. Imagine the story of that man. Assuredly a slave, a domesticated man well trained but even so a musician. Holding even then a priceless piece, a gift , free, worthless same as he with which he can make music. I hope Lizzo’s lips can breath some life into those stories.
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Yes, Richard—it’s important to acknowledge the complexity of our slave-owning founding fathers.
Your imaginary tale reminded me of the early days in NY’s Harlem. Affluent white people flocked to hear the brilliant Black musicians. However, Black patrons were not permitted to enter these clubs!
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Her performance, short as it may have been, was priceless too.
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Thanks, LA. I thought so too; thus, the “ Magic Flute.”
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I love the flute, it’s simply divine.
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I agree, KK; it always sounds ethereal to me. The start of the pandemic led to the cancellation of a James Galway concert for which we had tickets. So disappointing!
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I heard about this when it happened. The right-wing trolls will complain about ANYTHING. I bet they didn’t even know that James Madison had a flute or that the Library of Congress had flutes or any other instruments.
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I bet you’re right, Polly. I’m hoping my post showed the positives overshadowed their whining.
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I grew up with a piano in the house & piano lessons from the age of 5 onward. Also, we had music lessons in school … art, all kinds of things that aren’t offered because the funding has been cut. Lizzo’s act with this flute showed all kinds of kids that music is COOL, learning to play in instrument is COOL & it’s possible to learn this, even if it’s not offered in your school or you’re affluent enough to have a piano in the house & parents to pay for piano lessons.
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Absolutely, Polly—and I’m quite sure that thought was top of mind for the brilliant and dedicated Carla Hayden—that and expanding everyone’s knowledge about the LOC and its treasures.
And for this pop culture Luddite, it was a delight to see and hear how very COOL and talented Lizzo herself is!
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I get so very tired of he racism and hate in this country
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I think it’s hard to see our country moving beyond the hatred at this point, Mary, but I do believe we will— because we must. So many Black Americans take the long view, having lived through progress and then backlash. If they can eschew despair, I’m grateful to follow their example.
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I didn’t really know who Lizzo was. Thank you for explaining who she is and the significance of her playing this flute. She played beautifully. What good is a flute just sitting there, not being played?
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Indeed, JoAnna; that’s exactly Carla Hayden’s philosophy—encouraged originally by former President Obama. Feels right to me!
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I agree with Obama, what’s the point of having these treasures if no one gets to appreciate them? Tens of thousands of people, maybe more, now know Madison owned a crystal flute! I should think the artisan that made it, were he alive, would be happy to have it on display in such a joyful setting. Great story Annie.
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Thanks, Carol. And Obama knew that in nominating Carla Hayden, he’d found just the right person to translate that vision into reality.
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Yes. It sounds like it. I’m glad she still holds the position.
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I’ll bet not one of the faux-outraged knew of the flute’s existence prior to Lizzo playing it. A wonderful moment full of culture and significance.
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They surely did not, Matthew! And though I knew of the Library’s musical collection and the emphasis on publicly sharing its treasures, I’m indebted to Carla Hayden for her ingenious way of introducing it all through the superbly talented Lizzo.
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wonderful post! I love anything to do with libraries — our best examples of how socialism can work beautifully!
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Uh-oh, da-AL! Librarians are already under attack by the far right. How about we say a big rich white guy named Carnegie had a great idea that’s served us all well?😉
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sounds good to me lol
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It matters because access is what people need and want to create change. Access to government. Access to their elected officials. Access to public buildings and the means to get there. Change is how we all got here. Our ancestors, by many means, changed their country. Many without permission, most by knowing their lives could only be better by coming to this country. Change is how and why we grow. Small minded people do not like this or see it to their benefit and use it as un-American as their excuse. What Barack Obama did was give a vision to our most disadvantaged of what change can be like. He desired that society through the need for people to have more and there ability to achieve more was what government was meant to do. He helped elevated those that saw life not as he saw it. So a black woman rapper creating music on a white mans flute is not a revolution nor something to be disgraced. It is change due to access.
Thank you for this column. As always you pin point the question so we can discuss the answer that hopefully solves the problem. By being the voice of reason in the room we can open discussion rather than not.
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Thank you, Charles. Good to hear from you. “…change due to access”: I like that!
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Lizzo is a fabulous (and talented) role model
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Sure is, Sheree. Thanks!
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