As someone who is obsessed with celebrity relationships, I can usually spot them from a mile away. But when fans learned SZA and Drake were a couple back in the day, I was, for lack of a better word, shocked. The revelation came in October 2020 when Drake and 21 Savage dropped their “Mr. Right Now” collab. In the song, Drake raps, “Yeah, said she wanna f*ck to some SZA — wait, ‘cause I used to date SZA back in ’08.”
Of course, the internet went crazy over these lyrics, as many couldn’t believe that Drake and SZA were once an item. After the song was released, SZA reportedly unfollowed Drake on Instagram, leading fans to believe that there was drama between the two. However, SZA has since spoken highly of the rapper, telling Audacity in 2020 that she and Drake have remained “cool” despite their past dating history.
Fast-forward to Sept. 15, and SZA and Drake put out a new song together called “Slime You Out.” I know that was a quick breakdown of Drake and SZA’s relationship, so here’s a timeline of this pair’s dynamic over the years.
Oct. 4, 2020: Sza Confirms She & Drake Dated, But Corrected A Minor Detail
Two days after Drake and 21 Savage released “Mr. Right Now,” SZA confirmed that she and the “Rich Flex” rapper dated — but noted that his timeline was a little off. “So It was actually 2009 lol … in this case a year of poetic rap license mattered lol,” the “Kill Bill” singer tweeted. “I think he [just] innocently rhymed 08 w wait. Anybody who really knows me and was around during this time can confirm … it’s all love all peace.”
As for the concern fans had over her age at the time she dated Drake (in 2008, SZA would have been 17 while Drake was 22), SZA insisted her relationship with the rapper didn’t involve “anything underage or creepy.” She wrote in a separate tweet,”I just didn’t want anybody thinking anything underage or creepy was happening. Completely innocent. Lifetimes ago.”
December 2022: SZA Revisits Her Past Relationship with Drake In An Interview
Two years after confirming her past relationship with Drake, SZA further elaborated on their time together in an interview with Audacity. The New Jersey native first shared her reaction to hearing Drake reference their relationship in “Mr. Right Now.” She said, “In a strange way, I was like, ‘Did they know?’ But they didn’t ask me to be in it. Nobody said anything.”
She then compared the rapper to the iconic character Regina George from the 2004 cult classic Mean Girls. “I feel like Drake has a Regina George quality to him where it’s just kind of like, ‘Have you or anyone you know been personally victimized?’” she said. “He’s like a cool kid, you know? When you’re the popular kid in school, it’s entertaining. It’s entertaining, but you sometimes are taking losses in the midst of that entertainment. The honesty, I respect that. But I definitely laughed real hard…I cackled.”
Later in the interview, SZA revealed that she and Drake have “always been cool” despite what the internet thinks. “It’s never been weird. It’s never come completely out of the blue,” SZA explained, adding that Drake gave her a heads-up before “Mr. Right Now” dropped. “Any time he’s ever mentioned me, it’s always been positive,” she added. “He’s never said anything negative about me. I’m grateful for that and I think highly of him, and I think it’s really weird that as all these years went past, I am an artist now and I wasn’t then and he’s King Drake.”
Sept. 15, 2023: Drake and SZA drop a single
After all these years, SZA and Drake have finally collaborated on a song. The single is called “Slime You Out,” and will be featured on Drake’s upcoming For All The Dogs’ album. Both teased this new collaboration on their Instagrams by sharing the song’s cover art, which is of Halle Berry dripping in green slime at the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards in 2012. Drake even performed a snippet of the song during his concert in Dallas on Sept. 14.