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Beyoncé found herself on the hotseat after disability advocates took issue with one of the lyrics on her “Renaissance” album. In the song, “Heated,” she said, “Spazzin’ on that ass, spazz on that ass.”
For the record, “spastic” is a medical term that refers to a disability that makes it difficult for people to control their muscles, especially in their arms and legs. The lyric was criticized as ableist and offensive on social media. It even inspired an essay published on The Guardian where Hannah Diviney wrote, “Beyoncé’s commitment to storytelling musically and visually is unparalleled, as is her power to have the world paying attention to the narratives, struggles and nuanced lived experience of being a Black woman… But that doesn’t excuse her use of ableist language.”
After the backlash, Bey and her team released a statement saying that the lyric will be removed. “The word, not used intentionally in a harmful way, will be replaced,” they said in a statement.