PETA Starts Beef With Lizzo, But Does She Deserve the Smoke?

Lizzo is bringing the sizzle back to Chili’s, but not everyone is licking their fingers in approval.

The Grammy-winning singer announced a collaboration with the casual dining chain to revive its legendary “Baby Back Ribs” jingle. But while the restaurant chain hoped the campaign would leave fans hungry for ribs, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said the ad left a bad taste in its mouth.

In the official campaign, Lizzo brought out her flute for a remix to the classic jingle, swapping nostalgia for a full-blown disco production. She belts, raps and even plays a rib-shaped flute while celebrating Chili’s revamped ribs platter.

The animal rights organization blasted the collaboration online almost immediately after the ad debuted this week, accusing Lizzo of abandoning the vegan messaging she once proudly championed.

“PIGS WANT THEIR RIBS BACK,” PETA wrote in one social media post. “It’s about damn time you found a conscience,” the organization tweeted.

The same post also called the partnership “beyond grotesque.”

The criticism hit especially hard because Lizzo spent years championing a plant-based lifestyle. The singer routinely shared vegan meals, dairy-free recipes and wellness content with fans across social media, becoming one of pop music’s most famous advocates for veganism.

But Lizzo has since shifted course publicly.

Last year, the singer revealed she had started eating meat again after reevaluating her health and nutrition needs, signaling a move away from the strict vegan lifestyle she once embraced, the Independent reported. The Chili’s campaign seems to cement that evolution – loudly, proudly and with extra barbecue sauce.

And Lizzo, never one to shy away from spectacle, leaned all the way into it. In interviews promoting the ad campaign, the singer described Chili’s as a childhood staple and said reinventing the famous jingle felt both nostalgic and hilarious.

“We wanted to keep the music kind of the same,” Lizzo told PEOPLE. “But make it fun and very me.”

The original “Baby Back Ribs” ad campaign became one of the most recognizable restaurant jingles of the late 1990s and early 2000s, embedding itself in commercials, parodies and collective American memory alike.

Online, folks praised the singer. One user, @QuentinTurner, tweeted, “OKAY NOW I FKN LOVE YOU!!! THANK YOU FOR UNLOCKING A CORE MEMORY!!!!”

Another person, @busybrinaaa, joked that the jingle was “the best song u have made.”

Other folks took PETA’s side. “Not just Pigs, the truth hurts for all the animals exploited for entertainment and food. It’s time for a change,” @WilfredoS86180 said on the app.

“Wow, how awful. C’mon, you can do better Lizzo. This is gross and so disrespectful,” @MelissaS8904489 said.

The campaign comes as Lizzo gears up for the release of her upcoming album, “B*TCH.” As the derogatory title suggests, Lizzo never shies away from criticism, but it seems like the singer isn’t really affected by the noise.

Chili’s Chief Marketing Officer George Felix praised the singer’s reinterpretation of the decades-old tune, saying Lizzo brought “creativity and energy” to a jingle that has remained part of pop culture since the 1990s.