The following year, her Kendrick Lamar collaboration "All the Stars"—a top-ten single in both the US and UK—earned her Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song.

Her feature on Doja Cat's "Kiss Me More" set a record as the longest-running all-female collaboration in the US top-ten and won SZA her first Grammy Award.

SZA made her acting debut in the comedy film, One of Them Days (2025), and performed in the Super Bowl LIX halftime show alongside Kendrick Lamar.

[4] Rowe's parents were both from the southern part of the United States;[5] her mother, Audrey, was an executive at AT&T, while her father, Abdul, was an editor at CNN.

[16] Rowe formed her stage name, SZA, from the Supreme Alphabet,[17] taking influence from rappers RZA and GZA of the Wu-Tang Clan.

[19][20] SZA first met members of Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) during the CMJ New Music Report in 2011, when her boyfriend's clothing company sponsored a show in which Kendrick Lamar was performing.

[35] She followed up with the release of her third studio EP, Z, on April 8,[36] led by the single "Babylon" featuring Lamar,[37] which was accompanied by a music video directed by APlusFilmz.

[44] While working on her fourth EP, A, which would later become her debut album, SZA began writing songs for other singers, including Nicki Minaj and Beyoncé on "Feeling Myself", as well as Travis Scott on "Ok Alright".

[50] Around this time, she collaborated with several of her labelmates on various projects, including Ab-Soul on "Lonely Soul/The Law (Prelude)",[51] Schoolboy Q on "Neva Change",[52] Isaiah Rashad on "Stuck in the Mud",[53] and Kendrick Lamar on "Untitled 04 | 08.14.2014".

[59]Described as an R&B album with elements of jazz and alternative,[64][65] Ctrl was released to universal acclaim from music critics, earning a score of 86 out of 100 on Metacritic.

[67] The album spawned five singles: "Drew Barrymore", "Love Galore", "The Weekend", "Broken Clocks", and "Garden (Say It like Dat)", all of which are certified Double Platinum or higher by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

[75] Between August 2017 to February 2018, SZA promoted the album on a North American and Oceanic concert tour consisting of more than fifty shows.

[77] In August 2017, SZA collaborated with the American pop rock band Maroon 5 on their single "What Lovers Do", from their sixth studio album, Red Pill Blues.

[97] On April 22, 2020, she participated in a benefit concert alongside artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, and Halsey to support New Jersey's COVID-19 pandemic relief efforts.

[105] SZA made her long-awaited return as a lead artist on September 4, 2020, with "Hit Different", featuring Ty Dolla Sign and produced by the Neptunes.

[108][109] The track, which featured background vocals from English singer Jacob Collier, peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100, making it SZA's first solo top-ten hit.

[149][150] In March 2023, SZA modeled for Kim Kardashian's fashion brand, Skims, representing the "Fits Everybody" collection, which includes size-inclusive T-shirts, bodysuits, and intimate apparel.

[162] On November 25, 2024, SZA announced she would release a new album before the end of the year on Kai Cenat's Mafiathon 2 Twitch stream that also featured Lizzo.

[173] Her mother enjoyed R&B and church music,[174] her father was a fan of jazz and funk musicians like Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, and John Coltrane,[175][176] and her sister listened to melodic rap and hip hop artists like Tupac Shakur.

[180] SZA also cites Meelah, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, LFO, Macy Gray, Common, Björk, Jamiroquai, and "a lot of Wu, Nas, Mos Def, Hov" as inspirations.

She grew up listening to an eclectic combination of pop, rock, jazz, folk, and rap artists[204][208] and, as such, prefers to be labeled as someone who makes music and nothing more.

[216] Reviewing for Variety, Jem Aswad described SZA as "warm, witty and charismatic" and thought that her speaking voice can be as "honeying as the one she pours lavishly into her music".

[219] In 2023, Sophie Williams of NME highlighted the album's lasting influence, noting that even six years after its release, Ctrl's impact continues to shape a "new generation of young, bright artists".

[215] The Australian Broadcasting Corporation's journalist Al Newstead thought that the album redefined genre boundaries through combining classic R&B and neo soul traditions with modern sounds.

[225] In December 2018, SZA faced her first major leak when a nine-track unreleased album titled Comethru was distributed through a label called Scissor.

[226] In January 2024, SZA warned that she may pursue legal action against those who release her music without permission, stating that she promised to hold them accountable as much as the law allows.

[227] In March 2024, SZA addressed a fan on Twitter named Janessa who leaked unreleased images and audio, and later deleted and deactivated her accounts before RCA could take action.

[232] That same year, SZA launched a merchandise line called Ctrl Fishing Company, which includes apparel featuring phrases such as "Puck Flastic" and "Sustainability Gang", as well as sea animals like blue whales and seahorses.

[235] She battled suicidal depression following the sudden deaths of three ex-boyfriends in quick succession and found solace through prayer and music, which helped her work toward self-acceptance.

[8] SZA is known for keeping her personal life private;[236] however, she dated Canadian rapper and singer Drake in 2009,[237] and was in a relationship with a fashion designer for eleven years, being engaged for five.