Lizzo Rocks History
Lizzo collaborated with Carla Hayden, the first African American and first woman Librarian of Congress, to play James Madison’s 200-year-old crystal flute.
Lizzo was in D.C. for a concert at the end of September. While there, Hayden tagged Lizzo in a tweet about the collection of flutes held by the Librarian of Congress, inviting her to come see them and even play a few.
The @librarycongress has the largest flute collection in the world with more than 1,800. It incl Pres James Madison’s 1813 crystal flute. @lizzo we would love for you to come see it and even play a couple when you are in DC next week. Like your song they are “Good as hell.”😉 pic.twitter.com/2FkUFZfIYh
— Carla Hayden (@LibnOfCongress) September 23, 2022
The superstar singer, rapper, and classically trained flutist responded right away, meeting Hayden and playing the flute in the library.
A flute @lizzo played in the Main Reading Room Monday (with permission from some lucky researchers who were there!) looks similar to the crystal one she had at her concert, but is actually plexiglass. It is also very rare & was manufactured when the material was first invented.🔊 pic.twitter.com/3i33D9NdQV
— Library of Congress (@librarycongress) September 28, 2022
The crystal flute was given to Madison in honor of his second inauguration in 1813. It is one of only two crystal flutes known to exist. It was made by Parisian craftsman Claude Laurent. Madison is also one of the founders of the Library of Congress, along with John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. The library is open to the public for research. Only high-ranking government officials and library employees may check out books and materials.
When Lizzo asked if she could play the flute at her concert, the Library’s collection, preservation, and security teams were up the challenge. A Library curator and security officer brought Madison’s crystal flute to Lizzo’s concert the next night. After Lizzo played several notes, she carefully returned the flute, stating, “B***h, I just twerked and played James Madison’s crystal flute from the 1800s,” she exclaimed. “We just made history tonight!”
Making history in DC: @lizzo playing James Madison’s crystal flute from @librarycongress tonight! @nbcwashington @Telemundo44 pic.twitter.com/kYTTacURyZ
— Vince Lattanzio (@VinceLattanzio) September 28, 2022
Lizzo has been playing the flute since she was in grade school. She first learned by ear and then began private lessons. As a college student, she played in the University of Houston marching band. She also performed online with the New York Philharmonic orchestra during the pandemic. Lizzo’s own flute is named Sasha, after Beyonce’s “I Am Sasha Fierce,” and has its own Instagram account, www.instagram.com/sashabefluting. When Hayden read that Lizzo was coming to DC for a concert, she made it a point to invite Lizzo to see the library’s large collection of historic flutes. Read more at blogs.loc.gov/loc/2022/09/its-about-danged-time-lizzo-at-the-library.
James Madison served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. He was the primary author of the US Constitution as well as the Bill of Rights. It is important to note that Madison also originated the 3/5 compromise, which counted slaves as 3/5 of a person in order to determine the number of congressional representatives states were allowed. As a slave owner, he believed that former slaves were unlikely to successfully integrate into Southern society.
