SZA

There's nothing scatterbrained about her music. But there's always an oblique path to transcendence in a SZA song—meaningful digressions and spicy asides.

Still, there’s nothing like the caustic animality of “Shirt,” whose hook sums up everything we love about SZA: sass, equivocations, and the unexplained bloodstain. And “Smoking on My Ex Pack” sports competent bars by SZA, although its chorus is probably the best thing about it. “Blind,” with its acoustic guitar and rich orchestration, finds her claiming that “my past can’t escape me.” And the mood feels both wondrous and enchanted—ripe for SZA’s wounded, if not ratchet, reminiscences. The album contains no missteps, though “Ghost in the Machine,” with its references to robots, seems contrived, like a Black Mirror trope about the AI Art Generator. The call for silence seems apt: SZA’s boast that “that pussy is feeling like a great escape” sounds imminently worthy of some travel-oriented podcast. And the sacrifice (and labor) is evident from the jump; it’s there in the first few bars of each bop (as evidenced on “Prom,” which opens with lean vocals, whose controlled pathos is palpable). “I did it all for love,” SZA insists as the track spirals into sweet chaos. “That ass so fat, it look natural—it’s not!” sneers the artist born Solána Imani Rowe on the title track. And the worthy themes—retribution, nostalgia, ego—amount to the most intimate and juicy self-revelations since the Real World confessional booth. She’s the queen of revenge fantasy—exes get offed (before being told in no uncertain terms that their stroke is weak), and toxic rivals get dragged for fun in her songs, which come off like angsty if enchanting diary entries. The 33-year-old’s sharp register is stunning—a loopy lilt full of acrobatic twists and turns. [SZA](https://www.rollingstone.com/t/sza/) would be the cool girl with a Trapper Keeper full of receipts on everyone.

'SOS' evokes memories of “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill,' 'Beyoncé,' Rihanna's 'Anti' and even Taylor Swift's 'Red.'

Do these lines (and the many more like them) make “SOS” sound like a slog? (The album’s “general theme is: I’m pretty pissed,” SZA said this week in a radio interview with Hot 97.) Indeed, there’s actually a third rap cut on “SOS” at the midpoint of this 23-track set, and it might be the most stank-face-inducing of all: “Your favorite athlete screaming, ‘Text me back,’” she raps in “Smoking on My Ex Pack,” the words steaming like cooling lava, “I make no exception — the lesser part of me loves all the cap.” Like Swift, SZA writes with pinprick precision about the illusions that prop up ideas of romance and about the grim exhilaration to be found in crashing through them. Working with a varied cast of studio pros including DJ Dahi, Babyface, Benny Blanco, Shellback, Rodney Jerkins, Carter Lang and ThankGod4Cody, SZA paints a detailed portrait of millennial insecurity. (That sound you hear is hundreds of music critics cursing the fact that they published their She describes her fear of giving away what makes her special; she admits that if she were her ex, she wouldn’t take herself back.

SZA dropped her new 23-track album 'S.O.S.,” featuring Don Toliver, Phoebe Bridgers, Travis Scott, and Ol' Dirty Bastard, on December 9.

But “PSA” is nowhere to be found on the new release, which gives us some hope that she was lying when she [said](https://archive.flaunt.com/content/music/sza-new-fantasy-issue-feature) that the album below would be her last. [SZA](https://www.vulture.com/2017/06/sza-ctrl-interview.html) dropped the single [“Good Days”](https://www.vulture.com/2020/12/hear-szas-new-song-good-days-released-on-christmas-day.html) as a Christmas gift to fans nearly two years ago. [“Shirt”](https://www.vulture.com/2022/10/sza-shirt-music-video-release.html) landed on streaming services. “It’s about heartbreak, it’s about being lost, it’s about being pissed,” SZA said of the album [to People](https://people.com/music/sza-confirms-sophomore-albums-release-date-on-saturday-night-live/). There’s representation on S.O.S. S.O.S.

After a lengthy five-and-a-half-year wait, SZA has finally released her Ctrl followup, SOS. Clocking in at approximately one hour and 10 minutes, ...

The highly-anticipated album’s eclectic list of contributors gives SZA the space to explore a variety of sonic planes ranging from her traditional R&B to trap, indie and more, but her lyrical and vocal prowess remain strong and consistent throughout. She knows how to harness her vocal power and the honesty and vulnerability in her words, not only making her a favorite for critics but also keeping the relatability many connected with in Ctrl. Her first album in over five years is finally here.

SZA ends her five-year hiatus with the release of her second album 'SOS,' which was released Friday (Dec. 9) via Top Dawg Entertainment/RCA Records.

9) via Top Dawg Entertainment/RCA Records.SOS follows CTRL, her classic debut album that Previously released singles “Good Days,” “I Hate U” and “Shirt” are also included in the album, which have all reached the top 20 of the [Billboard Hot 100](https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/), as well as the full-length version of the oft-teased snippet “Blind,” which she [performed on Saturday Night Live](https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/sza-snl-performance-videos-sos-album-1235180830/) last weekend. For the cover story, Billboard had an earlier listen to select tracks of the album and described SOS as her “most daring body of work yet…. S.O.S is an album that certainly justifies a five-year wait.” 9) via Top Dawg Entertainment/RCA Records. 10 edition).

Contemporary R&B songstress SZA (real name: Solana Rowe) is a beloved gem in the genre. Ever since 2011, SZA has been sprinkling her magic with sensual ...

In the song, SZA makes it clear that all she wants is for her partner to act accordingly and make her feel secure so that they can be together without the drama. However, the hitmaker has done a really good job of keeping her romantic relationships out of the public eye. [SZA](https://www.distractify.com/t/sza) (real name: Solana Rowe) is a beloved gem in the genre. In essence, they find themselves falling deeper in love with someone although they’re clearly no good for them and don’t share the same feelings. As fans find themselves jamming to the sensual track, plenty have debated on the actual meaning of the song. [Shirt](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdFDrjfW548),” fans are wondering what the song means.

2022's not over yet, and this week's Notable Releases includes one of the most widely-anticipated albums of the year, SZA, as well as The Sound of Animals ...

[Gore](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/deftones-announ/) and 2020's [Ohms](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/brooklynvegans-top-55-albums-of-2020/)), and now Chino returns to Crosses to close out 2022 with a new EP from the group, Permanent.Radiant. [Circa Survive EP](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/circa-survive-are-making-some-of-the-best-music-of-their-career/) before the band [went on hiatus](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/circa-survive-compile-two-new-eps-for-final-pre-hiatus-lp-two-dreams-exclusive-vinyl/), put out a [great new solo album](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/rico-nasty-flo-milli-joey-badass-anthony-green-wake-sonagi-fixation-stand-still-spaced-suicide-machines-john-moreland-reviews/), and launched his new supergroup [L.S. ['Rising' feature on Pitchfork](https://pitchfork.com/features/rising/mercury-rapper-interview-tabula-rasa/), Mercury talked about why Kid Cudi was important enough to her to get a tattoo of him, called Young Thug the best rapper alive, shouted out Young Thug affiliate Gunna, and credited her dad with introducing her to Memphis rap like Three 6 Mafia and Tommy Wright III. [Ctrl](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/141-best-albums-of-the-2010s/) has been a long, [rocky](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/tdes-punch-addresses-the-long-wait-for-szas-new-album-we-know-exactly-when-its-coming-out/) road, but SOS is finally here and it was well worth the wait. Now just the duo of Chino and Far guitarist Shaun Lopez (they [parted ways](https://loudwire.com/crosses-insight-split-chuck-doom/) with bassist Chuck Doom), Permanent.Radiant picks up where Crosses' debut left off and it also continues the creative hot streak Chino has been on with Deftones. You can definitely hear how her own music was influenced by both Kid Cudi and Young Thug -- it ranges from poppy and melodic to weird and psychedelic to hard-hitting rap. [year-end lists](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/tags/best-of-2022/) continue to come out, but this month is not a total dead zone; in fact, one of the year's most widely-anticipated albums didn't come out until this week. Posthumous bars from the late Ol' Dirty Bastard (including sampled bits of "The Stomp") spice up the dusty boom bap of album closer "Forgiveless" (which also samples Björk’s "Hidden Place"), and SZA provides ear candy to her indie rock fans by bringing in Phoebe Bridgers to sing the bridge on "Ghost in the Machine." It has moments of pure catharsis, and moments of utter weirdness, and it's the kind of EP that only The Sound of Animals Fighting could write. Don Toliver, "Notice Me," "Conceited") to bare-bones and acoustic ("Blind," "Nobody Gets Me," "Special") to moments that fall somewhere in between, and she works in a few surprises along the way too. She straight-up raps on "Smoking On My Ex Pack," dives into murky trap on "Low," and perhaps the most unexpected moment is "F2F," a loud, stadium-sized, full-on rock song that SZA pulls off just as well as she pulls off the quiet songs (and which has an uncredited Lizzo appearance). It's also been a busy year for Rich Balling, who put out the guest-filled debut album by his new hyperpop project [Hospital Gown](https://www.brooklynvegan.com/gladie-caitlin-rose-foushee-squint-hospital-gown-reviews/).

It's the night SZA fans have spent years waiting for: the Grammy-winner's sophomore album S.O.S. has finally arrived. At midnight Friday, the TDE artist ...

spans 23 cuts and nearly 68 minutes, with the previously-heard “Good Days,” “I Hate U,” and “Shirt” all making appearances. She also confirmed the drop via Instagram, along with the official cover art and tracklist. In addition to the aforementioned guest artists, the album also boasts production by ThankGod4Cody, Darkchild, Robert Bisel, Los Hendrix, and more. I don’t know. I really don’t know. Which is why I had to go to the mode of what feels good to my brain and to my energy and the songs that I think are hot, I just have to go with them.