Anna Akana Reveals Why Lizzo Is Her Current Inspiration

Gina Alexander

Anna Akana stopped by Billboard's New York offices on Monday (Feb. 24) to perform a few songs and chat with Billboard's Jordyn Rolling about balancing being an actress and a singer. When inspirations came up, Akana couldn't help but gush over Lizzo.

"I'm really inspired by Lizzo, I feel like she's got such a good message," she said. "She's perpetuating this beautiful counter-societal message that we get that we're never good enough no matter what we do... I really love the message she puts out and that she makes music that makes you feel good, and makes you want to feel yourself and celebrate yourself."

Before Lizzo came along, one of Akana's earliest inspirations was her mom, who is also an artist. "Her whole thing is that whenever something hurtful happens to you, you can turn that into something beautiful," Akana shared.

That's exactly what the singer/actress has done with her own music, as she revealed that her debut album Casualty (which she released in October) came out of a breakup. "Very cliche, I know," Akana quipped. "My ex was a rapper and a musician, so I was like, 'Well, I'm going to make an album as well, and you're going to hear it and you're going to be in pain."

Akana performed Casualty track "Alone Together" during her Billboard visit, also playing two new songs, "Pink" -- the first song she's written that addresses her bisexuality -- and "I Feel Nothing."

Watch Akana's performance and Q&A below.