American singer-songwriter SZA was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on November 8, 1989. Her sound blends elements of hip-hop, soul, and rhythm and blues. With the release of her first studio album, Ctrl, in 2017, she became well-known. Themes of sexuality, self-image, and heartbreak are frequently explored in her music.
American singer-songwriter SZA was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on November 8, 1989. Her sound blends elements of hip-hop, soul, and rhythm and blues. With the release of her first studio album, Ctrl, in 2017, she became well-known. Themes of sexuality, self-image, and heartbreak are frequently explored in her music.
Muslim upbringing and education
Audrey Rowe, an executive at AT&T, and Abdul-Alim Mubarak-Rowe, an executive producer for CNN, welcomed Solána Imani Rowe into the world. She was brought up in the orthodox Muslim tradition in Maplewood, New Jersey. In order to adhere to modesty norms, she regularly donned a headscarf, dressed in loose clothing, and attended a Muslim prep school in addition to her regular education. Being the only Black person in her mostly white community, she frequently felt alone and was bullied following the September 11 attacks in 2001. At school, she would frequently remove her headscarf in an effort to blend in. Even though she had tense relationships with her faith as a child, she stayed committed to it. In a 2013 interview, she reminisced, “I’ll feel most comfortable with Islam forever.”
Rowe’s parents were aware of her musical ability from an early age. Her mother pushed her to accept her singing ability and even persuaded her to participate in a middle school talent contest. Her father had exposed her to jazz musicians Miles Davis and John Coltrane. She cheered as well, and for thirteen years, gymnastics was her main focus. As a sophomore at Maplewood’s Columbia High School, where she was ranked nationally and had an interest in mythology, other students made fun of her for having trouble interacting with people. “I was bullied because I wasn’t quiet and I was awkward at the same time,” she recounted in a 2023 interview.
Following his high school graduation in 2008, Rowe enrolled in three different universities before settling on Delaware State University to pursue a degree in marine biology. She was a habitual drinker and pot smoker who dropped out of college in her last semester after failing several classes. She subsequently remembered that she was having mental health issues and problems with her parents when she began working as a bartender at a strip club. She attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City for a summer after graduating from Delaware State, where she honed her sharp sense of style. She worked as an intern for Billionaire Boys Club, a streetwear clothing brand founded by Pharrell Williams and Nigo, as well as fashion designer and music producer.
Ascend to musical fame: In 2011, Rowe made significant connections that supported her career, including EPs, collaborations, Ctrl, and SOS. While she was bringing clothes to employees of Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), a small musical label that signed musicians such as Kendrick Lamar, Terrence Henderson, the head of TDE, heard a clip of her singing and was astounded by her ability. Following her self-released EP, S (2013), and mixtape, See.SZA.Run (2012), SZA became the first female artist to sign with TDE in 2013.
Clarence 13X, the creator of the Five Percent Nation, invented the Supreme Alphabet, which is represented by the abbreviation SZA (pronounced “SIZZ-ah”). “The S is for Sovereign or Self, Savior; the Z refers for Zig-Zag-Zig, which represents enlightenment and acknowledgment of oneself; and the A speaks for the most exalted of all,” she said in an interview from 2018.” This is a reference to Allah.
