Beyoncé to change lyric on ‘Renaissance’ after ‘ableist slur’ accusations

The problematic lyric was featured in the song 'Heated,' which twice contained an offensive term for cerebral palsy (also known as spastic diplegia).

NOTE: This story contains offensive language. 

After activists online accused Beyoncé of including an “ableist slur” in a song from her latest album Renaissance, the singer announced she would remove the offensive lyric.

The problematic lyric was featured on the album’s 11th track, Heated, which twice contained the word “spaz,” an offensive term for cerebral palsy (also known as spastic diplegia).

“The word, not used intentionally in a harmful way, will be replaced,” a representative for Beyoncé, 40, told Good Morning America on Monday.

In June, pop singer Lizzo faced the same controversy and changed a lyric in her single Grrrls following a backlash from disability activists online.

Lizzo, 34, had also used the word “spaz” in her song, which was later removed.

“Let me make one thing clear: I never want to promote derogatory language,” Lizzo wrote in a statement posted to social media at the time.