SZA (born Solána Imani Rowe) has been trailblazing in R&B for some time now as she consistently lets her fans in with her relatable lyrics and soft vocals. The singer signed with Top Dawg Entertainment after releasing two EPs. She released her debut studio album CTRL and it debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. Much like her debut album, her singles also were well received as “Good Days,” “I Hate U,” and her feature on Doja Cat’s “Kiss Me More” all debuted on the Billboard Hot 100. Fans are gearing up for a highly anticipated sophomore project from SZA and we can’t wait to see what she does next.
10. “Good Days” SZA (2020)
ShareOn SZA's "Good Days" the artist sings about losing control of her life and wanting negativity out. The track was released on Christmas Day in 2020. The New Jersey native first previewed the record on Instagram in July 2020 with Jacob Collier's vocals and the track was heard again during the outro of her music video "Hit Different" featuring Ty Dolla $ign before it was officially released. SZA tells Genius that "Good days is a mantra more than a belief."
9. “Drew Barrymore” SZA ‘CTRL’ (2017)
ShareIn "Drew Barrymore" SZA sings about being insecure and staying in a romantic situation that is toxic. "I get so lonely I forget what I'm worth/We get so lonely we pretend that this works," SZA sings. The artist doesn't name-drop the famous actress its named after but she told Billboard how she got inspiration from the song. "I [wrote about] my younger life, which was haphazard: being at sleepaway camp away from my parents, being the only black girl, not even noticing until I got older, dealing with boys, self-hate, growth, and God," she said. "It's the first time I'm literally writing about my life instead of figuratively writing about it." "Drew Barrymore" was released on SZA's debut album 'CTRL' in 2017.
8. “Broken Clocks” SZA ‘CTRL’ (2017)
Share"Broken Clocks" is also found on SZA's debut album 'CTRL' where she sings about how she hustled working multiple jobs. "After I graduated I just started doing random jobs," she told Billboard in an interview back in 2013. "I figured I was going to be a scientist and travel the world or something like that. But in the meantime I just needed money. I got fired from every job I ever had, though." SZA performed "Broken Clocks" at the Grammy Awards in 2018 where she was nominated for "Best New Artist."
7. “2AM” SZA ‘CTRL’ (2017)
ShareSZA flips PARTYNEXTDOOR's Drake-assisted track "Come and See Me" which was released in 2016. In "2 AM" SZA speaks from the female's perspective on the receiving end of a man calling you to come over in the early hours of the morning. On the track, SZA realizes she's taken the role of the "side chick" yet is too attached to leave. At the end of "2 AM" SZA shares a snippet of her unreleased track "Inside Man."
6. “I Hate U” SZA (2021)
ShareSZA fans were in a drought in 2021 awaiting a solo performance from the New Jersey native until she dropped "I Hate U." The song was originally posted on the singer's secret Soundcloud account but once a snippet of the song went viral on TikTok the singer officially released the full song on December 3, 2021. "Honestly this started out as an exercise," she wrote on Instagram. "I just wanted somewhere to dump my thoughts without out pressure." "I Hate U" debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and she received her first No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
5. “Love Galore” SZA ft. Travis Scott ‘CTRL’ (2017)
Share"Love Galore" featuring Travis Scott is found on SZA's debut studio album 'CTRL.' SZA spoke to Genius about the meaning of the track. "This song is about being played by a dude," she told Genius. "This whole song is about being played out by a n---- who thought he was cuter than you, who thought he had it all together and he was, 'Skrrt skrrt', and he was on the move." "But somewhere in between this whole mayhem of whatever's going on, you got over it, and you flipped the script and didn't say anything," SZA added. "Why play yourself? You want me, you enjoy it, I want you, we have a good time and you're still not here for some strange reason." In the same interview, SZA said that Travis was "perfect" for the record and that she is a "huge fan of Travis." "I think he merges that super-fine line between melody and syncopation and pocket. And I love his pockets, and I love his note choice. He's just gnarly. He's perfect." The song appears on the deluxe version of 'CTRL' with a new verse which was released in 2022, five years after the initial release.
4. “No Love” Summer Walker ft. SZA ‘Still Not Over It’ (2021)
ShareSZA assisted fellow R&B crooner Summer Walker on "No Love" which appears on the ATL native's sophomore album 'Still Not Over It.' Both Summer and SZA speak about their previous toxic relationships and that they're through with dealing with these old partners as SZA sings "I would give like ten percent/You deserve like half of that/I'ma need my money back." Summer Walker released an extended remix with rapper Cardi B on March 25, 2022.
3. “The Weekend” SZA ‘CTRL’ (2017)
ShareOn "The Weekend" SZA sings about sharing the man she is romantically involved with two other other women. Fans initially thought that the singer was referring to just one other woman she was sharing her man with but the singer cleared it up with a tweet. "My man is MY man Is YOUR man heard thts HER man too," the singer wrote using the lyrics from the song. "Thts 3 women ..Not two. all getting played. one opted out." The singer added that she is singing from each woman's perspective. The music video was directed by Solange Knowles which SZA said she had a pleasure of working with the "Cranes In The Sky" singer. "She really sees the world maybe differently than I did," SZA told MTV News. "We both have taste, but it expresses in different ways. Her expression of shapes and the usage of color and her feeling of negative space, it's very abstract. I'm a very whimsical person, but just in a different way. Her whimsy is so refined, and exciting and very mysterious. It's cool."
2. “Kiss Me More” Doja Cat ft. SZA ‘Planet Her’ (2021)
Share"Kiss Me More" is the lead single from Doja Cat's third album 'Planet Her.' News broke of the Doja and SZA collab when the 'CTRL' singer interviewed the "Woman" singer for V Magazine. Doja explained that having SZA on the track with her felt "sexy "and "perfect." Doja Cat explained to Zane Lowe in another interview why she wanted to create a song like "Kiss Me More." "I wanted to make a song about kissing. I just thought it would be cute," Doja Cat said. "That doesn't happen too often, but just a song that's solely about kissing." Doja Cat and SZA earned their first Grammy for "Kiss Me More" at the 2022 award show in "Best Pop Duo/Group Performance."
1. “All The Stars” Kendrick Lamar ft. SZA ‘Black Panther: The Album Music from Inspired By’ (2018)
Share"All The Stars" by Kendrick Lamar and SZA is featured as the lead single for Marvel's 'Black Panther.' The song is heard at the end credits of the film. The track peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. "All The Stars" earned an Oscar nomination for "Best Original Song" at the 91st Academy Awards as well as was nominated for four Grammys at the 61st Grammy Awards including "Record of the Year" and "Song of the Year." This was not the first time the former labelmates collaborated with one another. They first worked together in 2014, on SZA’s "Babylon." Later, SZA provided backing vocals on both "u" and "For Sale?" from Kendrick’s 'To Pimp a Butterfly.' Both appeared Jay Rock’s 2015 release "Easy Bake." Kendrick also featured on SZA’s "Doves in the Wind."
