SZA

SZA (born November 8, 1989, St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.) is an American singer-songwriter whose musical style combines elements of rhythm and blues, hip-hop, and soul. She rose to prominence with her debut studio album, Ctrl, in 2017. Her music often explores themes of heartbreak, sexuality, and self-image.

Muslim upbringing and education

Solána Imani Rowe was born to Audrey Rowe, an executive at AT&T, and Abdul-Alim Mubarak-Rowe, an executive producer for CNN. She was raised in Maplewood, New Jersey, in the orthodox Muslim tradition. She attended a Muslim prep school on top of her regular schooling, frequently wore a hijab, and dressed in baggy clothing to conform to ideals of modesty. She often felt ostracized as one of the few Black people in her predominantly white community, and she experienced bullying after the September 11 attacks in 2001. She often took off her hijab at school in an attempt to fit in. Her relationship with her religion was sometimes fraught while she was growing up, but she remained devoted to it. As she recalled in a 2013 interview, “I’ll feel most comfortable with Islam forever.”

Rowe’s parents noticed her musical talent beginning at a young age. Her father introduced her to jazz artists Miles Davis and John Coltrane, and her mother encouraged her to embrace her vocal talent, even urging her to sing in a middle-school talent show. She also participated in cheerleading, and gymnastics was a focus for 13 years; she was the captain of her gymnastics team and ranked nationally as a sophomore at Maplewood’s Columbia High School, where other students teased her for her interest in mythology and difficulty navigating social situations. As she recalled in a 2023 interview, “I was bullied because I wasn’t quiet and I was awkward at the same time.”

After graduating from high school in 2008, Rowe attended three different colleges before eventually deciding to study marine biology at Delaware State University. She frequently drank alcohol and smoked marijuana, failed multiple courses, and dropped out of college in her final semester. She started bartending at a strip club at a time when, she later recalled, she was struggling with her mental health and experiencing tension with her parents. After leaving Delaware State, she spent a summer at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City and developed a keen fashion sense. She interned for Billionaire Boys Club, a clothing brand founded by fashion designers and music producers Pharrell Williams and Nigo, and later worked for 10.Deep, a streetwear clothing brand.

Rise to musical fame: EPs, collaborations, Ctrl, and SOS

Rowe made important connections in 2011 that bolstered her musical career. She was delivering clothing to members of Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), an independent record label that represented artists including Kendrick Lamar, when TDE copresident Terrence (“Punch”) Henderson heard a recording of her singing and was amazed by her talent. In 2013, after self-releasing her mixtape See.SZA.Run (2012) and an EP, S (2013), SZA became the first female artist signed with TDE.

Her stage name, SZA (pronounced “SIZZ-ah”), is an acronym of letters in the Supreme Alphabet, which was created by Clarence 13X, founder of the Five Percent Nation. As she explained in a 2018 interview, “The S stands for Sovereign or Self, Savior; the Z stands for Zig-Zag-Zig, which is enlightenment and acknowledgment of one’s self; and the A stands for the most high of all,” a reference to Allah.

In 2014 SZA released a second EP, Z, which, like her first two projects, delivered a dreamlike, enchanting sound. In that same year, she cowrote the song “Feeling Myself,” which was performed by Nicki Minaj and featured Beyoncé. In 2016 she was featured on Rihanna’s album ANTI.

In 2017 SZA released Ctrl, her debut studio album, featuring a contemporary rhythm-and-blues sound and exploring themes of romance, nostalgia, and insecurity. The album, which included the popular songs “Broken Clocks,” “The Weekend,” and “Love Galore,” reached number one on the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart and number three on the Billboard 200 chart, and it also received several Grammy Award nominations. In 2018 she collaborated with Kendrick Lamar on the song “All the Stars,” which was featured on the soundtrack of the movie Black Panther. The song earned them several Grammy Award nominations and an Academy Award nomination.

After Ctrl, SZA released singles and collaborations with artists including Justin Timberlake, Cardi B, and Post Malone. One of her most successful collaborations was “Kiss Me More” with rapper Doja Cat, which peaked in 2021 at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and earned SZA her first Grammy Award, for best pop duo/group performance. In 2022 she released her highly anticipated second studio album, SOS, which included the highest-charting song of her musical career, “Kill Bill.” In 2024 she scored nine Grammy nominations, the most for any artist that year. SOS was named best progressive R&B album, and the album’s single “Snooze” won for best R&B song. SZA also received the Grammy for best pop duo/group performance, for her collaboration with Phoebe Bridgers on the song “Ghost in the Machine.”