SZA is a big deal. She broke onto the scene with Ctrl in 2017 and hasn't looked back. She's had chart topping singles, and record-breaking album releases. SZA is a generational talent in the minds of many. And she's even making the transition to acting with the comedy One of Them Days. Despite all this, SZA has yet to full grapple with the concept of fame. The singer sat down for an interview with One of Them Days co-star Keke Palmer, and admitted she still finds the whole thing "weird."
"I don’t really know what is happening," SZA told Extra. "I don’t know what the hell going on. Didn’t grow up famous, I grew up in the 'burbs, I went to regular school, went to regular college, did regular odd jobs until everything popped off." As a result of this normal upbringing, SZA sometimes feel she's not cut out to be a celebrity. "They be like, 'That’s what you signed up for,' and then I’m like, 'I didn’t even know what I was signing up for, actually,'" she explained. "I just made a couple songs and I was grateful that they were liked, and then I kept going."
SZA Admits Not Knowing What She "Signed Up For"
SZA contrasted her upbringing with that of Keke Palmer, who grew up in front of the camera. She praised her co-star for navigating fame in a natural way. "Keke has this crazy network of a mechanism where it’s like, everything just kind of like flows, even when the cameras are on," she said. "Some people are very well acclimated in being perceived and also have a different mechanism to approach that." This dynamic with fame is something that SZA has articulated in both her music and the interviews about her music. It has been so prominent in her life, in fact, that she has considered stepping away from the limelight.
SZA told British Vogue that she felt burnt out after the release of her second album, SOS. She claimed that it led her to question if she was cut out for the career that she spent so long pursuing. "Maybe I’m just not meant to be famous," she wondered aloud. "I’m crashing and burning and behaving erratically. It’s not for me because I have so much anxiety." Fortunately, the singer has forged on, and proven to be a cinematic as well as musical talent. Hopefully fame becomes easier for her over time.
Read More: SZA Reveals To Drew Barrymore How Much She's Meant To Her Career In Emotional Heart-To-Heart
[via]