Lizzo Finds Her Voice Again on New Mixtape ‘My Face Hurts From Smiling’

Lizzo is going back to where it all started. With her new mixtape, My Face Hurts From Smiling, the rapper-turned-pop star revisits her hip-hop roots, offering a project that feels both spontaneous and personal. Released last week, the tape features guest appearances from Doja Cat and SZA and delivers a mix of playful energy and focused bars, just in time for summer.

In an interview with XXL on June 25, Lizzo explained the process behind the project and how the title came to be. At first, she had another name in mind.

“I was going to call this project, Valid Crash Out,” she said. “I was talking to my friends and they were like, ‘This is the first time we've heard you crash out. And it's valid, bi**h.’ I was like, woah. Valid Crash Out.”

But midway through recording, things shifted. What began as a high-energy rap session turned into something more joyful—and more connected.

“Then, like knee-deep through the process... I flew my best friend in from Houston,” Lizzo recalled. “We are doing all these vocals. We are having so much fun. And I'm just like, ‘My face hurts from smiling.’ My cheeks were literally cramping up. That just encapsulated the whole thing.”

Though the mixtape came together in just a week earlier in June, it carries a strong sense of purpose. Lizzo credits some of that drive to watching Kendrick Lamar’s recent creative run while on tour.

“He always creates,” she said. “Seeing him creating while on a stadium tour was really inspiring. I said, ‘You know what, Melissa? Get your a-- up and get to work. He’s on a stadium tour and he’s still hungry. That is just, like, super inspiring to me.’”

With My Face Hurts From Smiling, Lizzo reminds listeners that beneath the pop success is a rapper who still has something to say—and is having a good time saying it.