Sophia Michaels
SZA has always incorporated plenty of guitar into her genre-hopping music, but there have been hints along the way that she might be ready for a full-on rock turn — covering Wheatus’ “Teenage Dirtbag” onstage in 2019 was the biggest clue. “I really love Blink-182,” she says in her in-depth interview on the new episode of our Rolling Stone Music Now podcast. “I really love Good Charlotte.”
[wpcc-iframe src=”https://player.megaphone.fm/WWO5360171548″ frameborder=”no” height=”200″ scrolling=”no” width=”100%”]
On her new album SOS, the big rock moment is “F2F,” which hits hard both lyrically (“I fucked him ’cause I miss you,” she sings) and musically, even if it sounds more like Avril Lavigne than either of those other pop-punk bands. Hidden in the mix is a pitched-up vocal contribution by Lizzo, who was hanging out In the studio the day SZA recorded the song; she also did some writing on its bridge. “We just happened to have that one pulled up the day that that Lizzo was there,” says producer/engineer/songwriter Rob Bisel.
Both SZA and Lizzo took turns freestyling over the beat that became ‘F2F,” which was originally called “Charlatan,” according to songwriter/producer Carter Lang. “They were putting some energy into it,” he says. “That was the thing that I feel sparked SZA really taking it into her own world and figuring out how it can be part of her story in an authentic way and not like, ‘Hey, I just did a rock joint.’”
The sessions for SOS were long and fruitful ones, and it turns out “F2F” isn’t the only rock song recorded, nor is it the only Lizzo collaboration. “There’s definitely a handful [of tracks with Lizzo],” says Bisel, who wouldn’t quite reveal whether there are full-on duets in the vault. “I don’t want to incriminate myself here, but there’s some stuff floating around for sure.”
For SZA, the pairing makes sense: “We just have so much fun together,” she says. “And I feel like she gets me. She’s another person who has hella [wide] music tastes and doesn’t fit in anybody’s box of anything. She makes it seem like she doesn’t even care, like she just does whatever she wants. And I just love being with her, just as a friend and hanging out. So whenever she comes to a studio, I just feel like, ‘Let’s drop into some bullshit.’”
SZA estimates she recorded “five or six” rock songs total in the sessions, some of which may make the in-the-works deluxe version of SOS. “I made a whole bunch of rock songs,” she adds. “They were all terrible in terms of, like, saying bad things about what I’ve done to people, but it sounded cool, and I think that’s what all those songs are really about. Just being super honest and letting that out. But yeah, I love making those type of songs….For sure on this album. I made a whole bunch of versions of me.”
SZA explains in the episode that she felt no obligation to keep to any particular sound or approach during the five years of sessions for the album. “I feel like I’m the storyline,” she says. “And then I look at everything when it’s done and then, and I’m like, ‘OK, this is who I’ve been for the last five years. And I don’t know if it makes any sense or if it goes together, but this is what’s hot.’”
Download and subscribe to our weekly podcast, Rolling Stone Music Now, hosted by Brian Hiatt, on Apple Podcasts or Spotify (or wherever you get your podcasts). Check out six years’ worth of episodes in the archive, including in-depth, career-spanning interviews with Mariah Carey, Bruce Springsteen, Halsey, Neil Young, Snoop Dogg, Brandi Carlile, Phoebe Bridgers, Rick Ross, Alicia Keys, the National, Ice Cube, Taylor Hawkins, Willow, Keith Richards, Robert Plant, Dua Lipa, Questlove, Killer Mike, Julian Casablancas, Sheryl Crow, Johnny Marr, Scott Weiland, Liam Gallagher, Alice Cooper, Fleetwood Mac, Elvis Costello, John Legend, Donald Fagen, Charlie Puth, Phil Collins, Justin Townes Earle, Stephen Malkmus, Sebastian Bach, Tom Petty, Eddie Van Halen, Kelly Clarkson, Pete Townshend, Bob Seger, the Zombies, Gary Clark Jr., and many others. Plus, there are dozens of episodes featuring genre-spanning discussions, debates, and explainers with Rolling Stone’s critics and reporters.
