SZA’s Evolution Through the Years: Photos

2013

After two EPs, See.SZA.Run and pshe signed to Top Dawg Entertainment and became labelmates with Kendrick Lamar and Isaiah Rashad.

2014

In April 2014, she dropped her second EP in her “SZA” trilogy, Z. Later that year, she opened for Coldplay and Jhené Aiko on their tours.

“I didn’t expect people to like my music or take to it the way they have,” she shared Billboard in an interview that year. “Everything blew up. It’s different now. I feel like I owe people more.”

2015

Originally slated to drop the final installment of her “SZA” trilogy, ONEin 2015, SZA later scrapped the EP and began work on her debut album. She provided background vocals for Lamar’s Grammy-winning album To pimp a butterfly and featured on songs by Jay Rock, Wale and DRAM.

2016

While putting together her debut LP, she wrote songs for other artists, including “Consideration” for Rihanna’s album Anti. She featured on the track for the album and performed it with the “Love on the Brain” singer at the 2016 BRIT Awards.

2017

Her long-awaited debut album Ctrl was released to critical acclaim in June 2017 after her label took the hard drive of the record. Ctrl peaked at No. 3 on Billboard 200 and was named by several critics as one of the best albums of the year.

“I just got so nervous because I felt like my album was just an imaginary thing. I wasn’t thinking about having to make it for anybody, for anybody to hear it,” SZA explained Vulture. “Because if I think about making it a brand, then I have to think about ‘Do they like it? What did they think of me?’ ”

2018

She attended her first Grammy Awards in January, where she was nominated in five categories, including Best New Artist and Best R&B Performance. The following month she completed the Ctrl tour.

SZA had several high-profile collaborations in 2018, featuring on Lamar’s top 10 hit “All the Stars,” the lead track on Black Panther soundtrack and Cardi B’s “I Do” from her album Breach of privacy.

2019

Her 2019 was another year of collaborations, with appearances on four songs: “The Other Side” with Justin Timberlake for Trolls movie, Post Malone’s “Staring at the Sun,” DJ Khaled’s “Just Us” and “Power Is Power” featuring Travis Scott and The Weeknd.

2020

In September 2020, she dropped “Hit Different” featuring Ty Dolla Sign, her first song as a lead artist in three years, and followed it up with “Good Days” for Christmas. The latter number became her first top 10 hit as a solo artist.

2021

Her collaboration with Doja Cat, “Kiss Me More”, peaked at no. 3 on the Hot 100 and earned the duo a Grammy for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. At the end of the year, she released “I Hate U” after a viral moment on TikTok.

2022

After five years and multiple release date delays, SZA announced her second studio album SOS would drop on December 9th.

“It’s about heartbreak, it’s about revenge, it’s about getting mad,” she shared Glamour of the album’s themes.

2023

She embarked on her first-ever arena tour in February, performing 63 shows in North America, Europe and Oceania. Black named her Hitmaker of the Year, and she dedicated the award “to all my fans who listened to me before I ever hit number one or anything like that.”

SZA also received six Grammy nominations, including album of the year for SOS and record and song of the year for “Kill Bill”.

2024

After finishing her SOS tour in May, she filmed her acting debut One of these daysa buddy comedy opposite Keke Palmer. She also headlined a number of music festivals in the summer, including Lollapalooza in Chicago and Glastonbury in the UK.

After two features on Kendrick Lamar’s surprise album GNXthe pair announced a joint stadium tour for 2025. The surprises didn’t stop there: SZA also released the reissue of SOSwith the title Lanaon 20 Dec.