SZA has continued to make her way into the mainstream music scene with the release of her most recent studio album SOS. Through her journey, she has created music that touches listeners emotionally and empowers women everywhere.
Her grind and dedication to get to where she is today prove how inspiring she is and why she is that girl — someone who is unapologetically herself and confident in herself and her work.
SZA had a difficult upbringing. Growing up, she was shy and experienced bullying due to her religion as she grew up Muslim in a predominantly white community.
“I’ll feel most comfortable with Islam forever. It just makes the most sense to me out of everything else … I like the clarity,” she said in an interview with Complex.
It can be hard for a sense of self to be taken away, especially one so intimate and personal. But SZA has been able to get to a place where this aspect of her life is clear and comfortable. Her upbringing wasn’t easy, but she has been able to find herself through exploring what matters most.
SZA’s journey to her present status tells of her philosophy — to do things for herself.
When SZA was in college in 2011 and 2012, she started creating music on SoundCloud. Here, she gained some traction online from her lyrics. This is when her stage name was born.
She explained to Complex that her name is an acronym from the Supreme Alphabet and stands for Savior Zig-Zag Allah, but the singer says the meaning behind the S “didn’t sit right” with her, so she changed it to Sovereign. Her beautiful and meaningful name started to spiral in the underground R&B artist scene.
In 2013, SZA was signed to the record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) and is notably the only female artist on the label after a friend played one of her tracks to TDE president Terrence “Punch” Henderson.
Less than a year after being signed, SZA dropped her first album, Z. This slow-tempo R&B album revealed SZA’s angelic vocals and allowed her to show off her lyricism. In 2017, she released her album Ctrl which received much critical acclaim and debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 in its opening week.
Unfortunately, some harsh realities come with being a woman in the spotlight. On a Dove’s Girl Collective panel in 2018, she opened up about her experience with self-esteem.
She said, “The type of woman I want to be comes with a different outfit, a different home, a different dog, a different man, a different reality. And I like that, that I never know who I’m going to end up being.”
Her ability to be open to new experiences and not be afraid of the future is refreshing because there are a lot of people who feel scared about what could come next. But for SZA, she finds the future intriguing and open to new opportunities.
Since Ctrl, it took five years for her most recent album, SOS, to come out, but it was worth the wait. Less than two months after its release, SZA’s third studio album was certified platinum by the RIAA in February 2023.
SOS is a vulnerable and meaningful album, from the art to the name. In an interview with Hot 97, SZA said she took inspiration from a photo of Princess Diana sitting on a diving board over open water for the album and wanted to evoke the same feeling of loneliness that the picture does. The name SOS itself is also significant because it is a cry for help. Overall, the exploration of love’s highs and lows is evident and authentically sung and produced.
The opening title track, “SOS,” is perfect to start off the album with the sense of urgency of its sudden start, its production and its lyrics. The morse code signals, the sample of Gabriel Hardeman Delegation’s 1976 gospel exhortation “Until I Found the Lord (My Soul Couldn’t Rest)”, and SZA’s strong vocals coming in, gets right into the deep end and feels like it’s calling out of distress. With singles like “Snooze,” “Kill Bill,” “Good Days,” and “I Hate U,” SZA’s sound and energy feel powerful.
This latest album is significant for many reasons. Her sound has changed with a deeper exploration of her range, showcasing her versatility. The subject matter of this album is also intriguing, specifically her songs about insecurity and self-worth. She finds a way to communicate these feelings in a comforting way. Songs like “Gone Girl,” “Nobody Gets Me,” and “Special” come to mind that demonstrate this sense of blame that can come from relationships.
Pacing is a defining element of SZA’s music. She has an interesting and beautiful way of using speed to tell her stories. SOS specifically plays around with different tempos on the tracklist. “SOS,” for example, is fast and sudden and transitions into the slower, more rhythmic “Kill Bill.” Then there are songs like “Conceited,” with a retro percussion beat that moves into the slow, melodic ballad “Special.” These combinations play with speed to showcase how stories told differently can all hit the same.
SOS sparks important conversations by discussing honesty and the toxicity SZA has with herself and in relationships.
In an interview with Elle, she said, “The only way that I don’t bore myself is to bare myself. It’s freeing and empowering AF.” She can feel comfortable in her body and has learned her self-worth — feelings that can sometimes feel so hard to achieve but are possible when putting yourself first.
In an interview with Billboard prior to the SOS release, SZA talked about the new era of her career. She revealed that she didn’t use to sing or play instruments growing up; she just did her own thing.
She keeps this same philosophy as she says, “Right now I’m in that stage where I can prove to myself that I can, like, do choreography, and design a stage … and be whatever I want.”
It comes as no surprise then that her SOS tour sold out. Travelling around North America and Europe throughout 2023, SZA showcases her singing talents and performance skills. The sets and technology used to create a beautiful experience show her attention to detail. In addition, her choreography, which she mentioned she has been working on herself more recently, shows her dedication to her work.
SZA also talked to Elle about handling fame after the release of SOS.
“I’m just, dead-ass, a person. Everybody else has feelings and fears. Why wouldn’t I be scared to be famous,” she explained. “I wasn’t born famous. I had regular quiet-ass parents from a small town like everybody else. And I guess at some point I’m supposed to acclimate to all of this?”
Her transparency is genuine — she grew up not knowing she would end up such a successful artist, and throughout her journey, she has proved to stay grounded.
SZA is someone who is inspiring for so many reasons. Her authenticity spans more than just her music. She continuously strives to be her best self while addressing the negative things that she has been through. Her songs are healing anthems filled with her experiences and the feelings she has felt along the way.
The pressures of being a celebrity and a woman are not easy to navigate, but SZA has been open about how she handles them. Her transparency continues to inspire audiences.
SZA is that girl — she knows her worth and does not shy away from her emotions. She was not always in this place, but how she got here is beautiful.