Glastonbury is gearing up for its final night as the 2024 festival comes to an end.
Throughout the course of this year’s festival, a slew of famous faces have already graced the stage to the 200,000 strong crowd at Worthy Farm in Somerset. Amongst the headlining acts were Dua Lipa and Coldplay, with Shania Twain set to play the Sunday Legends slot later tonight (Sunday, June 30).
However, headlining the Pyramid Stage to close out the festivities is American singer-songwriter SZA. The name may not seem particularly familiar, but she has already made a name for herself, selling out arenas with her hip-hop and R&B tracks.
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So, as SZA gears up to bring this year’s Glastonbury Festival to an end, Daily Star looks at her life and the success she has already had.
Beginnings
(Image: Billboard via Getty Images)
SZA is the stage name of Solána Imani Rowe, a 34-year-old singer-songwriter from the city of St. Louis in Missouri. She adopted her stage name as she started out in the music scene, with the letters coming from Islam’s supreme alphabet.
Pronounced as “siz-za”, the S stands for sovereign, Z comes to mean zig-zag and A is for Allah. Having been raised by an Orthodox Muslim father, SZA’s childhood came to massively influence her music going forward as she was able to listen to the likes of Miles Davis and Billie Holiday, before being exposed to the likes of the Wu-Tang Clan and Björk.
SZA’s music career first came into being in 2011 when she handed out merchandise at a Kendrick Lamar concert with her mixtapes playing in the background. The music caught the attention of a music mogul, who saw her potential and kept in touch as she continued her musical career – releasing two EPs by 2013.
Gaining recognition
(Image: Billboard via Getty Images)
Her second EP, S – released in 2013 – was released to critical acclaim, with The Guardian comparing her to heavyweights in the new R&B genre including The Weeknd and Frank Ocean. Her first major collaboration came in 2016, when she worked with Rihanna on her track Consideration – again, to hugely positive reviews.
Her first taste of mainstream recognition came in 2018, when she released her first full album – working with the likes of Kendrick Lamar on the Black Panther soundtrack in the process. She also was able to garner the attention of other pop contemporaries including Lizzo and Justin Timberlake, all of whom have credited SZA’s lyrical honesty as an influence.
This recognition from fellow artists also translated into huge success, as she has now racked up an impressive four Grammy Awards, as well as nominations at the Golden Globes and even an Oscars nod. Here in the UK, SZA has now been recognised – having won the accolade of Best International Artist in 2024.
Feuds and friendships
(Image: Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
In late 2022, SZA’s second album SOS began to compete with titan Taylor Swift for the No.1 spot on the Billboard charts in the States, fuelling rumours that the pair were having a secret feud behind the scenes. However, this was soon quashed when both were seen hugging at the 2023 Grammy Awards, sharing nothing but love and appreciation for each other.
SZA herself came out to pour water on the allegations, writing: “I don’t have beef with ANYONE – especially not Taylor lmao. I genuinely loved her album and the writing!”
Taylor also went on to say that she was a fan of SZA, saying in a post: “PS – Been listening to SZA’s album nonstop. Absolutely adore her music; so much love and respect for her!!”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
