TDE

SZA Wanted To Join Odd Future Before Signing To TDE

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There was a time when Tyler, The Creator and his Odd Future crew dominated music and television. The eclectic group of artists helped usher in a new era of Hip Hop—if not breed a dedicated fanbase committed to copying their styles. SZA was one of those supporters, and in a new interview with The New York Times, the S.O.S. hitmaker revisited those early days in her career. She was the first woman to ink a deal with Top Dawg Entertainment in 2013, but before that, she was an independent artist hoping to join Odd Future.

“Quiet as it’s kept, I wanted to be with, like, Odd Future,” said SZA. “I felt more like a [Odd Future manager Christian Clancy] girl.” Her connection to Odd Future wasn’t absent—SZA would release tracks over Odd Future beats. After making the big leap to move to California, she quickly began establishing a relationship with TDE. It was then that she also linked with Mac Miller, who happened to be a client of Clancy’s, as well.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 05: SZA speaks onstage during the 65th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy )
Read More: SZA Reflects On Having A “Great Time” At 2023 Grammys

In the end, the songbird decided to move forward with TDE because, as she says, “Punch believed in me.” SZA was referring to Top Dawg’s illustrious president who she has had some tense moments with. It has become a lucrative partnership, albeit riddled with controversies. Her debut Ctrl was widely praised, but it would take years before S.O.S. followed. The world watched as SZA called out her label for delaying S.O.S.‘s release, but once it arrived, its success was record-breaking.

Elsewhere in the NYT piece, SZA commented on the expectations laid upon Black artists. According to the singer, Black musicians are respected more in the industry if they juggle multiple skills while also coming from a pristine background. She doesn’t believe this adequately describes most of the artists with popular influence.

Read More: SZA Ties Whitney Houston’s Billboard Record

SZA says revered artists are those “who play 50 instruments, went to all the right schools, did all the right programs and talked to all the right people. I don’t like that. Black excellence is NBA YoungBoy putting out projects and speaking his heart and screaming into a microphone.”

[via]

Ray Vaughn Builds “Sandcastles” With Ab-Soul On New Single

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Ray Vaughn tapped TDE labelmate Ab-Soul for a new track, “Sandcastles.” Moreover, both MCs deliver impassioned, emphatic, and high-impact verses over a heavy banger beat. With a new project coming soon from the recent signee, Vaughn might just make his big splash this year.

INDIO, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 23: Rapper Ray Vaughn performs on the Sahara Stage during Weekend 2, Day 2 of the 2022 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 23, 2022 in Indio, California. (Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images for Coachella)

Furthermore, the last we heard from the Long Beach native was back in August of 2022 with the Isaiah Rashad-assisted “Dog House.” On that track, Vaughn matched Rashad’s often low-key but intoxicating delivery over a smooth beat. This time around, it seems he’s boasting and matching the energy of one of TDE’s premier MCs.

In fact, the California label has a lot to celebrate recently. Moreover, Ab-Soul just dropped his long-awaited album Herbert to critical acclaim last December. While Ray Vaughn isn’t featured on that project, this new single displays some strong chemistry between their performance styles. Both have their energy on high, command fast and aggressive flows with ease, and add a lot of conviction to the track.

Meanwhile, the instrumental is a mid-tempo banger with heavy bass, sharp snares, and eerie piano chords. For those enamored by this beat, producer Wallis Lane worked with the likes of Mac Miller, Drake, PARTYNEXTDOOR, and many more. Even if it falls into an engaging bounce assisted by the MCs’ triplet flows, you could remix that melody into some creepy stuff easily. Throughout the verses, the instrumental relies on muted plucked strings and ethereal synth pad samples to switch things up.

Still, what did you think of Ray Vaughn’s newest single with Ab-Soul, “Sandcastles”? Whatever the case, let us know in the comments and peep some standout lines from the track below. Also, if you haven’t heard it yet, you can find the song on your preferred streaming service. As always, check back in with HNHH for the best new drops in hip-hop.

Quotable Lyrics

The lil’ homie got five hundred when he ran it up off EDD
A year later, he back broke, robbin’ white folks on Beverly
All F on my report card, got a list full of felonies
Better learn to choose your words better, that’s the quickest way to put your life in jeopardy

TDE’s Punch Shouts Out Doubters & SZA Fans Who “Stayed Patient” For “S.O.S.” Album

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SZA dropped her second studio album S.O.S. earlier this month and is already enjoying the success of the highly-anticipated project. In addition to songs like “Kill Bill” and “Blind” going viral on social media, the album has also quickly climbed the charts, solidifying it as a solid follow-up to her Grammy-nominated 2017 album Ctrl.

Punch, president of Top Dawg Entertainment, recently took to his Twitter to acknowledge the album’s stats, admitting, “I never really focus on the numbers too much. Of course I pay attention to them, the quality of the art is always at the forefront for me. But these SOS numbers aren’t too shabby. Lol”

Showing gratitude to SZA’s fans who stayed patient while waiting for the album, Punch also gave a shout-out to the “doubters” in a follow-up tweet. 

The record exec continued, “Shout out to the real fans who stayed down and stayed patient. Shout to TDE and the doubters who doubted us. Love y’all.”

READ MORE: SZA Confirms Plastic Surgery Rumors On “SOS”

“A few of y’all n****s had a lot to say… lol. I won’t bring it up. I see you,” the seasoned rapper then posted.

While sitting down with Rolling Stone’s Music Now podcast, the St. Louis native opened up about feeling nervous about how S.O.S. would be perceived overall. 

“If n****s hate it, then great. I can never do music again. And I told my engineer, we’ll move to India and we’ll live on an ashram and we’ll take a vow of silence and that’s it,” she told the outlet earlier this month.

“And it is also really scary that it didn’t go that way because I’m like, now what do I do? And what does this actually mean and when do the tides turn?” SZA then shared. “When does everyone decide that they hate me again or that this sucks? And that’s unhealthy. That’s something I need to talk to my therapist about.”

Have you heard SZA’s latest project? Drop your favorite S.O.S. songs in the comments below.

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