Good Days

At Long Last, SZA Teases Her New Album At The 2022 Met Gala: ‘It’ll Be A SZA Summer’

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SZA met gala 2022
Getty Image / Dimitrios Kambouris

More “Good Days” may soon be upon us: At last night’s Met Gala, SZA mentioned that her much-anticipated sophomore album is complete and its release is imminent.

When speaking with Vogue, SZA said, “The album’s finally ready to go — more than I’ve ever felt before. So this summer, it’ll be a SZA summer.”

SZA’s upcoming album will be her first release since her debut album CTRL, which dropped in 2017. She first gave us a taste of a new era back in 2020, with The Neptunes-produced “Hit Different,” which featured Ty Dolla Sign. On Christmas Day of that year, she surprised fans with a single called “Good Days.” Since then, fans have been eagerly waiting for a new full-length project.

Also coming soon is SZA’s Top Dawg Entertainment labelmate Kendrick Lamar’s upcoming fourth and final album on the label, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, which is set for release on May 13. If Top Dawg’s release schedule parallels that of 2017, SZA’s album could follow shortly after.

In addition to new music, SZA will perform at the Outside Lands festival this August. Perhaps we’ll get new music ahead of her performance. She also teased an acting role earlier this year, but has not confirmed the character or the film to which she is attached.

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SZA Says ‘I Really Hate My Label’ After ‘Good Days’ Dropped Out Of The ‘Billboard’ Hot 100 Chart

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SZA has had her fair share of quarrels with her label, Top Dawg Entertainment. An example came on Tuesday after news that her most recent single, “Good Days,” fell out of the Billboard Hot 100 after staying within the singles chart for 20 consecutive weeks. The song was released on Christmas Day and later peaked at No. 9 on the chart before its descent began. After getting word that the song was gone, SZA didn’t take it kindly.

“I really hate my label . So much,” she wrote under a SZA fan account page that shared the news. The singer did not specify why she put the blame on her label. It should also be noted that SZA is signed to both TDE and RCA, so it’s unknown who her comments are exactly directed at, but given her past, it’s safe to guess that the message is aimed at the former.

Last summer, SZA called out TDE’s president, Terrence “Punch” Henderson, for not releasing some of her new music. “At this point y’all gotta ask punch,” she tweeted, adding, “I’ve done all I can do.” SZA’s frustration was exacerbated when one person revealed that Punch merely said “soon” when they asked him about a release date for her upcoming music. “This is all he says to me as well,” she wrote. “Welcome to my f*cking life .”

SZA Transports To Her Happy Place In The Whimsical ‘Good Days’ Video

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Fans have been pressing SZA about the status of her sophomore album ever since the singer’s debut record Ctrl took off in 2017. SZA has said that her next LP is “on the way,” but to appease fans, the singer returned Friday to share a vibrant video alongside her 2020 single “Good Days.”

Directed by SZA herself, the “Good Days” visual depicts SZA drifting off in a daydream and transporting herself to two of her happy places. She appears in a whimsical garden, surrounded by moss and life-sized mushrooms, where she lets go of her inhibitions through meditation and dance. Her second happy place is a fully stocked library, where she combs through books while pole dancing.

Ahead of the visual’s release, SZA addressed how a snippet of her upcoming song went viral on TikTok. Because the song is unreleased, fans have decided to name it “Shirt,” but SZA isn’t so sure about that title. “‘Shirt’ is super easy to remember and now every time I work on it in the studio I reference it as ‘Shirt,’” she said in a recent interview with CBS This Morning. “Some people call it ‘Blood Stain,’ which is very graphic. Now this song, which I wasn’t even 100 percent sure of the placement on my album has centered itself on my album. Now we shot a video for it.”

Watch SZA’s “Good Days” video above.