48 Fun Facts About SZA

What is SZA's real first name?

Solána gave rise to a nickname her friends use for her, and SZA folded that nickname into the meanings behind the title of her album SOS.

Which New Jersey town did SZA grow up in?

Maplewood's Columbia High School inducted her into its hall of fame, and in her speech she admitted she had been unpopular there and never went to prom.

SZA's stage name nods to RZA and GZA, two members of which hip-hop group?

Wu-Tang Clan's RZA later returned the nod by narrating the teaser video that revealed the release date of her debut album, Ctrl.

SZA stopped wearing her hijab in middle school after which event left her scared of how people would react?

The September 11 attacks scared her out of covering, and when she started wearing it again in high school, some people judged her as not devout enough.

What did SZA study at Delaware State University before dropping out in her final semester?

Marine biology was her major; in 2018 she unveiled Ctrl Fishing Co., a clothing line whose profits she pledged to protecting the oceans.

Which record label signed SZA in July 2013, making her its first female artist?

Top Dawg Entertainment signed SZA in July 2013 as its first female artist; she had met label president Terrence 'Punch' Henderson at a 2011 CMJ show her boyfriend's clothing company sponsored.

Pushing back on critics' labels, which genre tag did SZA add to an early song on SoundCloud?

Not R&B was her way of refusing the box: she has called that label lazy and disrespectful, one people hand her simply because she is Black.

Which actor-director lip-synced to SZA's song 'Drive' in a teaser video in 2024?

Ben Stiller's clip doubled as the announcement that her long-delayed SOS deluxe edition would finally arrive that Friday.

SZA premiered her song 'Saturn' in a 2024 Grammys-night ad for which card company?

Mastercard's ad cast her in an enchanted forest, fitting a campaign that pledges to plant millions of trees around the globe.

Which Rihanna song did SZA co-write and feature on, having planned it as the centrepiece of her own album?

Consideration already had a music video filmed for her own album, and though losing it frustrated her, she later said she was glad it happened.

SZA co-wrote 'Feeling Myself', a 2014 collaboration between Beyoncé and which rapper?

Nicki Minaj and Beyoncé sing words SZA wrote: she says she wrote parts of the lyrics, more than two years before her own debut album finally came out.

What was SZA's debut album originally going to be titled before it became Ctrl?

A was meant to close a trilogy of one-letter releases spelling out SZA, after her EPs S and Z, until the project grew into a full album.

Which actress's name is also the title of a single from SZA's album Ctrl?

Drew Barrymore's outcast film roles made SZA feel better about being awkward, and the actress later made a brief cameo in the song's music video.

Which Ctrl single features Travis Scott?

Love Galore went on without Travis Scott when she sang it on Saturday Night Live, so she filled his spot with a new verse of her own.

What did SZA cut back on Ctrl so her voice could be heard clearly?

Reverb had been her cover, she has said: once the effects were stripped away, she found she was forced to actually say something in her songs.

Who beat SZA for Best New Artist at the 2018 Grammys, where she won nothing?

Alessia Cara won, then defended the award on Instagram after a backlash, while SZA, the night's most-nominated woman, went home empty-handed.

'All the Stars', SZA's 2018 duet with Kendrick Lamar, led the soundtrack of which film?

Black Panther's soundtrack was produced and curated by Kendrick Lamar and the head of his label, after director Ryan Coogler hand-picked them for the job.

SZA's first Billboard Hot 100 top ten came as a featured artist on 'What Lovers Do' by which band?

Maroon 5's video for the song moves to Las Vegas, where Adam Levine loses a poker game to SZA, grows into a giant and rampages until he is brought down.

'Kiss Me More', which won SZA her first Grammy, was a collaboration with which artist?

Doja Cat's 'Kiss Me More' builds its chorus on Olivia Newton-John's 'Physical', so that song's writers also share credit on it.

Which December 2020 single, the lead single from SOS, gave SZA her first solo top ten in the US?

'Good Days', released on Christmas Day 2020 as the lead single from SOS, peaked at number nine on the Hot 100, SZA's first solo top ten.

Which pop star picked up SZA's dress train as she climbed the 2022 Grammys stage on crutches?

Lady Gaga had just lost the award to her; SZA was on crutches after falling out of bed and hurting her ankle shortly before the show.

Which beauty chain apologised to SZA in 2019 after she said staff called security on her while she shopped?

Sephora shut every US store for an hour of staff inclusion workshops a month later, though it said the training had been planned before her tweet.

The SOS album cover, with SZA seated on a diving board over the sea, references a photo of whom?

Diana, Princess of Wales, looked so isolated in that photo that SZA used it as her reference, and the diving board was built after a shipping-barge shoot fell through.

How did SZA reveal SOS's track list?

A layout poll: she posted two versions of the album's back cover and asked fans which worked best, which doubled as the unofficial track list announcement.

SOS broke which albums' records for the longest US top-ten runs by a woman and by a Black artist?

21 and Thriller were both passed in spring 2025, more than two years after release, and SZA said matching Michael Jackson's record left her speechless.

Which British festival did SZA close on its final night in June 2024?

Glastonbury gave her a rough night: her microphone sounded muddy for the first half hour, and the crowd was unusually thin for a Pyramid Stage closer.

Which actress from the Kill Bill films makes a cameo in SZA's 'Kill Bill' music video?

Vivica A. Fox reprises her assassin from the films, picking SZA up in her car and driving her off to train for revenge.

Which sport did SZA compete in as a teenager before turning to music?

Gymnastics stayed with her: in a 2024 Olympics promo she held a handstand a few seconds longer than Simone Biles to win their friendly contest.

Which SOS single won Best R&B Song at the 2024 Grammys, where SZA was the most-nominated artist?

Snooze came out of sessions for Babyface's album Girls Night Out, where it was planned as a duet, before SZA kept the song for SOS.

Which pop-rock track on SOS was co-written with Lizzo, SZA's would-be rock bandmate?

F2F came together in the studio as Lizzo watched SZA freestyle nearly the whole song except the chorus, and its '90s grunge feel had them joking it was for their band.

What forced SZA off several dates of her label's Championship Tour in 2018?

Swollen vocal cords sidelined her after 11 months of touring, and after a comeback show at Madison Square Garden she tweeted that her voice was permanently injured.

Which Drake song featuring SZA became her second US number one in September 2023?

Slime You Out was teased with a photo of Halle Berry getting slimed at the 2012 Kids' Choice Awards, and Berry said Drake used it after she had told him no.

What is the title of the deluxe reissue of SOS, released in December 2024?

Lana was her first tattoo, done at 13 when letters cost $10 each, and with only $40 she could afford just four letters of her name.

'Luther', SZA's 13-week US number one with Kendrick Lamar, appears on which of his albums?

GNX carries 'Luther', which is reportedly named for Luther Vandross and built on a sample of his 1982 duet with Cheryl Lynn, 'If This World Were Mine'.

After SZA guested in Kendrick Lamar's 2025 Super Bowl halftime show, which of their duets jumped into the US top ten?

30 for 30 leapt from 22 to 10 on the Hot 100 that week, even though the song was left out of the halftime set.

What record did SZA and Kendrick Lamar's 2025 Grand National run of stadium shows break?

Highest-grossing co-headlining tour ever, it was also a stadium spectacle, with SZA riding a giant ant prop she introduced to the crowd as Anthony.

Which sneaker brand named SZA its artistic director in 2025?

Vans launched the deal with a campaign built around the Knu Skool, a chunky skate shoe she said she had been wearing for years.

SZA made her film debut opposite Keke Palmer in which 2025 buddy comedy?

One of Them Days never got its Los Angeles premiere, which was called off as wildfires swept the city days before the film opened.

Whose recorded voice opens 'Open Arms', a ballad on SZA's album SOS?

Her grandmother, whose spoken advice ran through Ctrl, died before SOS came out, and SZA opened the song with a recording of her as a tribute.

Which folk legend's first name titles a track on the SOS deluxe edition?

Joni Mitchell's namesake first slipped out in 2021 on an anonymous SoundCloud account that SZA linked from her own Twitter, and only reached streaming services in 2025.

Which late Wu-Tang Clan rapper is credited as a guest on SZA's album SOS?

Ol' Dirty Bastard, who died in 2004, is credited posthumously on 'Forgiveless', the closing track of SOS, through archival vocals.

Which Grammy did SZA's album SOS win at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards?

Best Progressive R&B Album was known as Best Urban Contemporary Album until 2020, when the Recording Academy renamed it amid criticism of the name.

On her SOS Tour, what carried SZA through the air above the arena crowd?

A life raft rescued her after a staged storm wrecked her ship, and she sang from it while floating over the floor towards a lighthouse.

What did SZA play while co-hosting a meditation session with Lizzo on Instagram Live in 2020?

A singing bowl was her half of the sound healing while Lizzo played flute, and more than 11,000 people tuned in to the 45-minute session.

Why did SZA's label confiscate her hard drive while she was making Ctrl?

She could not choose which songs to keep from the 150 to 200 she had recorded, so taking the drive forced the much-delayed Ctrl out that June.

As a young dancer, SZA performed pieces set to which singer's music?

Björk soundtracked her dance pieces years before SZA called her the GOAT and worked Björk's 'Hidden Place' into the closing track of SOS.

Which pop star played one of SZA's love interests in one of her 2023 music videos?

Justin Bieber went from cameo to duet partner: three weeks after the video came out, SZA released an acoustic version of the song as a duet with him.

When a fan asked SZA's label boss to release her shelved music in 2020, what one-word reply did he give?

Soon was all he ever told her too, SZA tweeted, adding that their relationship had been hostile, though she later deleted her 'ask Punch' post.