SZA is a genre-defying, Maplewood, NJ-raised, GRAMMY Award-winning recording artist from St. Louis, Missouri. Music trendsetter and icon, she is the next artist to take the stage for Apple Music Live — the live performance series that gives the biggest stars in music a platform to connect with audiences around the world.
The Apple Music Live performance at the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn, New York will debut Wednesday, January 31st, at 03:00 am GMT / 7:00 pm PT exclusively via Apple Music and Apple TV+. Fans can also stream the Apple Music Live performance anytime on-demand on both Apple Music and Apple TV+.
Apple Music Live: SZA
During the performance, SZA showcases her biggest hits and fan favorites including, “Kill Bill,” “Snooze,” “Seek & Destroy,” and “Nobody Gets Me,” plus selections from the critically acclaimed Ctrl: “Drew Barrymore,” “Broken Clocks,” “Love Galore” and more.
In an extensive career-spanning conversation airing tomorrow on Apple Music 1, SZA sat down with Zane Lowe to reflect on her Apple Music Live performance and record-breaking year, telling Zane: “I love connecting with people in the crowd when I feel like it’s really me and you right now. And I go eye to eye with so many people during this show, and it’s something about tour that it makes the love real and tangible.”
During the candid conversation, SZA also touched on navigating fame, her spiritual hygiene, overcoming anxiety, taking creative risks, and more.
Behind SZA’s ‘SOS’ Album & Tour | Apple Music Live
“SZA was one the most streamed artists of 2023 with only her second full-length album, we are elated to finally bring her S.O.S Tour to Apple Music Live. The show is, of course, incredible just like her music, her songwriting, and her desire to give us, the fans, so much amazing content. Here’s to an even more successful 2024 for her. Thank You SZA!” — stated Ebro Darden, Apple Music’s Global Head of Hip Hop and R&B
Over the past year, streams for SZA’s music have nearly quadrupled on Apple Music worldwide increasing 280% as she smashed several records with her sophomore album, “SOS.” Upon the release of the album, SZA broke the record for the R&B artist with the most simultaneous entries on the Global Daily Top 100, with 26 songs reaching the chart in one day. Breakout single, “Kill Bill” spent 28 days at No. 1 on the Global Daily Top 100, her longest run at No. 1 in the chart’s history. Eventually, the song reached No. 1 in 37 countries worldwide. Additionally, “Kill Bill” finished at No. 3 on Apple Music’s Top 100 2023: Global chart. With the single “Snooze” at No. 5, she became the first R&B artist in the year-end chart history to have two songs in the top five of the year-end global songs chart.
Over the past two years, “SZA Essentials” has been one of the fastest-growing R&B playlists on Apple Music, with a 203% increase in streams worldwide. SZA has launched 12 songs to the top 10 of Apple Music’s Global Daily Top 100. She is among the top 50 artists of all time on Apple Music worldwide.
SZA
SZA released her long-awaited sophomore album “SOS” (Top Dawg Entertainment/RCA Records) on December 9, 2022, which earned RIAA Gold certification upon release. Instantly and universally met with acclaim, “SOS” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and remained in the top spot for ten non-consecutive weeks. Amassing over 400 million streams in the US during release week, “SOS” became SZA’s first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 (the second largest streaming week for a female artist and third largest of 2022 among all albums at the time) and dominated worldwide charts with No. 1 debuts in Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, and more.
While “SOS” also debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top R&B Albums and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts, several tracks dominated song charts and playlists across digital service providers, with standout track “Kill Bill” earning SZA her first No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and Global 200 charts. Currently RIAA-certified 3x Platinum, “SOS” includes features by Travis Scott, Don Toliver, Phoebe Bridgers, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard; with production by “Ctrl” hitmaking collaborators ThankGod4Cody and Carter Lang, alongside Jeff Bhasker, Rob Bisel, Benny Blanco, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Emile Haynie, Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, Jay Versace, and more.
SZA – “SOS” album
The launch of “SOS” fostered a series of new achievements for the dynamic global icon. SZA peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Artist 100 chart as the most popular artist across all musical genres and No. 1 on the Hot 100 Songwriters chart. “SOS” broke the record for the most weeks at No. 1 by a woman on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart, and the first R&B album to spend ten non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 this century. “SOS” yielded four No. 1 hits at both Rhythm and Urban Mainstream radio – “Snooze,” “Kill Bill,” “Shirt,” and “I Hate U.” SZA closed out 2023 as the most Grammy-nominated artist of the year with a total of nine, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year for “Kill Bill,” Album of the Year and Best Progressive R&B Album for “SOS,” Best R&B Song for “Snooze,” and more.
In 2017, SZA released her major label debut album, “Ctrl” (TDE/RCA). Revered for its raw and honest lyrics, it landed at No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B Albums chart, No. 2 on the R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart, and No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. RIAA-certified 3x Platinum, the album received five Grammy nominations in 2018, and more than half the songs on “Ctrl” are currently certified multi-platinum and Gold. “Ctrl” has remained on the Billboard 200 chart since its release and holds the record for the longest run for any Black female artist’s debut album.
SZA
An Academy Awards nominee, SZA has won 27 awards since the release of “Ctrl” including a 2022 GRAMMY Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Kiss Me More” with Doja Cat, Billboard Music Awards’ Top R&B Female Artist, BET Awards’ Best New Artist, BET Soul Train Awards’ Best R&B/Soul Female Artist and Best New Artist, MTV Video Music Awards’ Best Visual Effects for the “All The Stars” with Kendrick Lamar, and NAACP Image Awards Outstanding New Artist, among others.
In 2018, SZA won the NAACP Image Awards’ Outstanding Duo or Group for “All The Stars” with Kendrick Lamar and Outstanding Soundtrack/Compilation for the Black Panther Soundtrack. SZA also received Billboard’s 2019 Women in Music Rule Breaker award and more recently named Billboard’s 2023 Woman of the Year, Webby Awards’ Artist of the Year, WSJ Magazine’s Music Innovator of the Year, and Variety’s Hitmaker of the Year.
To this day, SZA continues to set the standard on creativity and songwriting, while shattering records with over 10 billion streams worldwide across all platforms
Apple Music Live
The second season of Apple Music Live kicked off this past May with a special performance by Ed Sheeran, which was followed by Burna Boy’s historic London Stadium show from earlier this summer and Dominic Fike gave an electrifying show in Atlanta. Brent Faiyaz serenaded a packed house in London and most recently Peso Pluma brought his música mexicana sound to Anaheim complete with his full live band.
Additional Apple Music Live standout performances have included Harry Styles‘ “One Night Only” in New York performance, Billie Eilish‘s Live at the O2 performance; Alicia Keys‘ first-ever Holiday Masquerade Ball; and riveting performances from chart-topping artists Lil Durk, Mary J. Blige, Luke Combs, and Wizkid. Explore the full lineup of past performances in the Apple Music Live archive.
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