By Ariana Rathan & Zander Sherry
R&B singer SZA released her long-awaited album, “SOS,” on Friday, Dec. 9. Since her freshman album: CTRL, a five-year drought in her discography saw influences from other creative minds in the music industry, several side projects and, most notably, the generation of millions of new fans who all waited eagerly for a new, full album.
And SZA did not disappoint. In the last few weeks, SZA got closer and closer to SOS, showing fans a taste of what was to come.
Over the past couple of years, SZA released three songs that featured on the album, starting with “Good Days”, released in December 2020. The success of this single, reaching the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100, expanded SZA’s audience by way of its composition and dreamy vocals.
A year later, SZA’s songwriting on “I Hate U” created a huge buzz on online platforms, which would often popularize the singer’s songs through leaks before they would even hit streaming services. This was also the case for “Shirt,” the most recent of SZA’s early releases, which teased her album together in its final stages.
The album itself, composed of 23 well-written tracks, takes listeners through a roller coaster of emotions. With clear highs and lows, SZA deals with the themes of jealousy, isolation and spite, but throws in a triumph of self-determination and acceptance. The whole time, she blasts through genres to subvert her fans’ expectations of her old sound.
Fans were shocked and delighted to hear the classic R&B artist branch out into different genres. Even though there were new sounds explored throughout the album, SZA still stamped her signature soft, breathy, and powerful vocals onto each song.
We reviewed songs that show some of the ways SZA continuously redefined her sound throughout this album. The sentiments she evoked on these tracks (and many others) will ring in our ears for years to come.
“SOS“
Opening with a morse code distress call and the sound of a flare gun, the first track on “SOS” sets the mood for the album. With the sound mix of SZA’s full voice and different harmonies, it is a beautiful opening song. With the utilization of a gospel sample distortion, SZA uses insane breath control to introduce her fans to the bold and unrestrained delivery that seeps through the rest of the album’s tracks.
As one of the most popular songs on the album, “Kill Bill” brings forth an onslaught of relatable sentiments, underlying the track’s tropical chords with a bassline that walks all over SZA’s vocal inflections. SZA spills her darkest thoughts onto the page, switching from “I might kill my ex” to “I’m so mature,” as she expresses her feelings of hurt and despair. The contrast of the song’s bright composition and macabre lyrics illustrates the dichotomy that comes out of a heartbreak. The switches from head to chest throughout the chorus brings the unique SZA sound from her last album “Ctrl,” into a new light.
“Blind“
Beautifully crafted riffs, followed by a soft guitar strum and a later progression of strings, “Blind” shows SZA’s feelings of regret from her past love life. As one of her leaked songs, fans eagerly awaited its release.”
The 11th track on the album probably surprised fans and officially solidified SZA’s position in her label, Top Dawg Entertainment, as a rapper. She delivers confident bars over chipmunk-soul style production in a track that adds to her variety of anti-ex songs, many of which shine through on “SOS.” With a title and hook in clear influence of her former labelmate Kendrick Lamar’s iconic “Smoking on yo’ top five” late last year off of Baby Keem’s “family ties,” SZA does not shy of the boisterous attitude we see on many rap hits today.
“F2F“
“F2F” is one of SZA’s most far-stretched and different songs. Taking on an indie rock sound, similar to artists like Beabadoobee, the up-tempo electric guitar tune brings an early 2000’s vibe to the album. Talking about missing her ex and admitting to being able to do nothing but care shows the feeling of longing, a common theme throughout the album.
As one of the most sentimental tracks on the record, “Open Arms” lands between two of SZA’s hottest produced and acclaimed dance-pop R&B tracks (“Shirt” and “I Hate U”), to provide listeners with a safe space to open their hearts. It’s an acoustic cut where SZA belts devotion and acceptance, using excessive and well-executed vocal inflections to define the track’s melody in a tender, complex way. “Push me away, I’ll be right here,” SZA professes as the album nears its end.
Through the 23 tracks, SZA let fans explore the world of her personal as well as musical journey throughout the years. By holding the hands of fans going through heartbreak and hard times, she validates the emotions. The long-awaited release of the album came at the right time, leaving fans everywhere hopeful, wanting more, and craving the ethereal sound that is SZA.
