Jorja Smith being called ‘fat’ shows how warped our body standards still are

Jorja Smith released her second record, Falling or Flying to critical acclaim at the end of September. The album was called “sumptuous” and “mesmerising” by Pitchfork and NME. Jorja sold out release shows in London, Manchester and Birmingham. But, when she performed, everyone was talking about her body instead of her music.

“What happened to Jorja Smith?” questioned one man on Twitter to 16.7k likes of agreement this weekend. “This is sad to see,” wrote another person in the comments. “Obesity happened,” said a third. “She got fat bro,” claimed a fourth.

Over on TikTok, the story is much the same. Under every video of Jorja performing or answering questions about her new album is comment after comment of intense trolling about her weight: “She had the Adele affect in reverse,” wrote one man. “Turned into a hippopotamus,” said another under a post by British Vogue.

It should go without saying that these comments are disgusting. Jorja is a musician and her job in the public eye is to write and release records— not to stay skinny enough for our warped perception of what’s accepted as beautiful.

Even amongst fans who’re supporting Jorja, there’s almost got to be a “reason” for her weight gain. “She’s got that relationship build,” hypothesised one fan. “My girl Jorja is definitely pregnant,” added another. But what if this is just what Jorja looks like when she’s 26 years old, happy and healthy? Why does her body have to be justified?

“I have put on some weight, but what people don’t know is that I’ve struggled with my weight since I was a kid in school,” Jorja told The Sunday Times. “I usually deal with stuff in silence, but it’s really getting to me now.

“Look, I’m not 18 any more. I haven’t got a plastic surgery body, so my tummy is not flat,” she added. “I can’t escape…[trolling] makes me not want to do photoshoots, not want to go anywhere.”

Whether performing on Strictly Come Dancing, at her live shows, or chatting on TV about her new album, you’d be hard stretched to find an instance Jorja Smith has stepped outside her house without someone analysing the way she looks. And if this abuse keeps going – we might lose her from the industry altogether. Because, why would any woman want to keep putting themselves through this relentless bullying?

“I just want them to listen to my music,” she said. “But I’ll probably have to deal with this throughout my whole life…I’m actually healthy and people want to have a go at me. I can’t win. I’m never gonna win, but I want people to know that these comments don’t bounce off me.”

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Featured image credit via Instagram and TikTok