Lizzo’s album Special is pure unfettered joy—a celebration of disco, funk, soul, self-love and compassion that encourages listeners to live their truth. She sure is. In this intimate interview with Zane Lowe, the pop superstar gets real about the healing nature of songwriting, shrugging off internet backlash, and the ways in which she’s using her platform to meet a scary political moment. “I've never really been somebody who liked just talking about stuff,” she says. “I’ve always felt like, ‘God, if I'm saying this, I need to do something. If I'm upset and people are in the streets upset, let me go out where the people are.’ I can't just sit around. For so long, I felt helpless. Then, as soon as I had any resources or platform, I was like, ‘It's time.’”