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Lana
Cover art variant for "Lana": SZA in a yellow camping tent, taking off her grey shirt
First cover art posted to social media
Studio album by
SZA
Released2024 (2024)
Label
Producer
SZA chronology
SOS
(2022) 		Lana
(2024)
Singles from Lana
  1. " Saturn"
    Released: February 22, 2024

Lana is the upcoming third studio album by American singer-songwriter SZA. It is scheduled to be released sometime in 2024, through Top Dawg Entertainment and RCA Records. Originally planned as the deluxe edition of SZA's previous studio album, SOS (2022), Lana evolved into its own album that would consist solely of new music.

Background

American singer-songwriter SZA released her second studio album SOS on December 9, 2022, to widespread acclaim and high commercial success. [1] [2] It opened with a score of 94 on the review aggregate website Metacritic, [3] debuted atop the Billboard 200, broke a string of chart records, and spawned several career milestones. [4] SZA teased the imminent release of its deluxe version on Instagram upon SOS's release, [5] and she teased it again on a December 21 post, where she expressed gratitude for the album's number-one debut: "Imma take another swing at it for the deluxe then shut up for a while." [6]

During the album rollout, many of SZA's unreleased songs were circulating the Internet. Fans gravitated towards them and wanted them on the tracklist like SZA did, but Punch, president of SZA's label Top Dawg Entertainment, had reservations. [7] She described him, who primarily curated the standard version's tracklist, as someone with "a very strong opinion" about the matter in a December 2022 Consequence cover story. [8] She told Rolling Stone the same month that one song [note 1] was excluded because "no one wanted to hear songs that were out for years", [9] [10] and another was not deemed exciting enough for inclusion despite the positive reception from fans on Twitter. [11] In a January 2023 interview with Most Requested Live, SZA said the deluxe edition would feature the awaited outtakes: "that's what deluxe and things are for. Sometimes it's 10 songs that didn't make the cut, so we'll see." [12]

On February 25, 2023, Billboard reported that ten songs will be released as part of the deluxe edition of SOS. [13] SZA officially announced in September that it had become a "whole 'nother album" titled Lana, [14] [15] which she confirmed again during a Variety feature story. She told the magazine that the release would be unexpected, and she compared herself to Frank Ocean and André 3000 in that she was free to do whatever she wanted. [16] Elaborating on her decision to release another full album worth of material, she said that it had become more than expected and referred to the creative process as fun and did not spend too much time living in her "own head". [17]

Recording and release

SZA wrote and recorded over 100 songs for SOS within a timespan of five years. [18] [19] She and her collaborator, album producer Carter Lang, continued to make music after its release specifically for Lana, motivated by sporadic bursts of creativity. [20] By February 4, 2024, the day of the 66th Annual Grammy Awards, SZA told The Hollywood Reporter that the album was still "shaping itself" as she let her voice follow "whatever the [album]'s frequency [was]", though she refused to disclose more details. She reasoned that doing so would inadvertently change her creative direction for the album. [21]

The official announcement for the upcoming album took place during a surprise party held in Brooklyn Navy Yard to celebrate the success of SOS. During the event, SZA performed four songs intended for the deluxe edition: " Saturn", " PSA", " DTM", [note 2] and "Boy from South Detroit". [24] On December 10, SZA revealed six cover art variants for Lana on Instagram. [25] She once again alluded its release was on the way on March 12, 2024, while teasing an unreleased song; the accompanying video depicts SZA as she poses in a camping tent wearing nothing but a red bikini. [26] [27]

"Saturn" was released to streaming services on February 22, 2024, reportedly as Lana's lead single. [28] She previously performed "Saturn" for a Mastercard commercial during the 66th Annual Grammy Awards, swinging in front of a backdrop covered by tree and flower props that referenced a company's tree-planting campaign started by the company to combat climate change. [29] [30]

On March 25, SZA claimed in now-deleted Twitter posts that following the leaks of three songs intended for SOS, she would be "starting [the album] from scratch" and added: "At this point, y’all can keep the throwaways and leaks [...] Seems like a fair deal. Enjoy." [31] However, she seemed to change her mind as hours later, she posted again to say that the leaks and other outtakes would be officially released on another deluxe edition of SOS as to "not prolong" the wait for Lana itself. [32]

Title

SZA, whose real name is Solána, used one of her nicknames to give SOS its title, [33] and the same was true for Lana. She got her nickname "Lana" at 13 years old, when she planned to have her first name tattooed on her. According to her, she had to pay $10 per letter, but having only $40, she used only the last four letters of "Solana" for her tattoo. [34]

Notes

  1. ^ "Joni", released online in 2021 [8]
  2. ^ Then called "Diamond Boy" [22] and "OD" [23]

References

  1. ^ Williams, Sophie (February 23, 2023). "How SZA Inspired a Generation of R&B Storytellers: 'She's a Radical Light'". NME. Archived from the original on December 17, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  2. ^ Mitchell, Gail; Unterberger, Andrew (October 5, 2023). "Why SZA's SOS Could Bring R&B Back to the Grammys Big Four". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 13, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  3. ^ Espinoza, Joshua (December 11, 2022). "Here Are the First-Week Sales Projections for SZA's SOS". Complex. Archived from the original on February 23, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  4. ^ Anderson, Trevor (December 9, 2023). "1 Year of SOS: 8 Records & Achievements for SZA's Blockbuster Album". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  5. ^ Calfee, Joel (December 11, 2023). "SZA Teases New Music with Mysterious Farm Photos on Instagram". Harper's Bazaar. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  6. ^ Peters, Mitchell (December 21, 2022). "SZA's Blown Away by the Success of SOS on Billboard Charts: 'Not What I Expected'". Billboard. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  7. ^ Aswad, Jem (February 22, 2023). "SZA to Release Deluxe Edition of SOS with 10 Bonus Tracks". Variety. Archived from the original on December 3, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  8. ^ a b Wicker, Jewel (December 12, 2022). "SZA Is Trying to Save Herself". Consequence. Archived from the original on January 1, 2023. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  9. ^ Yates, Shanique (December 21, 2023). "SZA Claims Team Prevented These Fan-Favorites from Appearing on SOS". Revolt. Archived from the original on December 19, 2023. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  10. ^ Inman, DeMicia (December 22, 2022). "SZA Explains Why Certain Fan-Favorite Songs Were Excluded from New Album, SOS". Vibe. Archived from the original on December 22, 2022. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  11. ^ Cummings-Grady, Mackenzie (December 21, 2023). "SZA Claims Her Team Blocked Fan-Favorite Songs from SOS". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  12. ^ Skinner, Tom (January 26, 2023). "SZA Teases 'Surprises Coming Soon'". NME. Archived from the original on September 13, 2023. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  13. ^ Richards, Will (February 25, 2023). "SZA to release 10 unheard songs on deluxe version of SOS". NME. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  14. ^ Brodsky, Rachel (September 9, 2023). "SZA Says SOS Deluxe Is Actually "A Whole Nother Album" Called Lana". Stereogum. Archived from the original on September 14, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  15. ^ Lyttle, Zoey; Blanchet, Brenton (September 9, 2023). "SZA Announces Deluxe Version of Sophomore Album SOS — Titled Lana — Featuring '7 to 10' New Songs". People. Archived from the original on October 26, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  16. ^ Powell, Jon (November 29, 2023). "SZA provides update on Lana project: "It's become more than I expected"". Revolt. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  17. ^ Trapp, Malcolm (November 29, 2023). "SZA Says She Can Drop Lana Randomly Because "No One's Actually Expecting" It". Rap-Up. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  18. ^ Exposito, Suzy (February 23, 2023). "Your Favorite Artist's Favorite Artist: How SZA Went from Cult Star to Pop Superstar". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  19. ^ Rowley, Glenn (October 17, 2022). "SZA Reveals She Recorded 'A Hundred' Songs for Sophomore Album, Which She Says Is Coming 'Any Day'". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 8, 2022. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  20. ^ Conteh, Mankaprr (October 3, 2023). "What's Behind SZA's Biggest Year Yet? Work, Wonder, and 'Weird Shit'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  21. ^ Williams, Kyann-Sian (February 12, 2024). "SZA on New Album Lana : 'I Want to Allow It to Finish Shaping Itself'". NME. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
  22. ^ Abraham, Mya (October 3, 2023). "SZA Compares Upcoming Deluxe Album Lana to Lil Uzi Vert's LUV vs. the World 2". Vibe. Archived from the original on November 2, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  23. ^ Fisher, Caroline (August 25, 2023). "Justin Bieber Joins SZA in New Music Video for 'Snooze'". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  24. ^ Kelly, Tyler Damara (September 11, 2023). "SZA Reveals Forthcoming Deluxe Edition of Her Album, SOS, Is Called Lana". The Line of Best Fit. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  25. ^ Geraghty, Hollie (December 11, 2023). "SZA reveals Lana cover art, celebrates one-year anniversary of SOS". NME. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  26. ^ Gonzalez, Alex (March 13, 2024). "SZA Sings About 'Community D*ck' on a New Snippet Teasing Lana, Which Is 'Bout to Drop'". Uproxx. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  27. ^ Moore, Sam (March 13, 2024). "SZA Fuels Excitement for SOS Deluxe with Racy Video Teaser". HipHopDX. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  28. ^ "Saturn – Single by SZA". Spotify. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
  29. ^ Spanos, Brittany (February 5, 2024). "SZA Debuts Lush New Song 'Saturn' During Grammys Commercial". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  30. ^ Thomas, Carly (February 5, 2024). "SZA Sings 'Snooze' and 'Kill Bill' During Fierce Grammys Performance". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  31. ^ Schube, Will (March 26, 2024). "SZA Says She's Remaking Lana Deluxe from Scratch Due to Song Leaks". HipHopDX. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  32. ^ Gonzalez, Alex (March 27, 2024). "SZA Says She'll Release the SOS Leaks as Part of the Deluxe, But Is Still Working on Lana". Uproxx. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  33. ^ Gumede, Bongeka; Tshabalala, Gugulethu (January 20, 2023). "One Album, Two Takes: SZA's Latest Offering Is a Stellar Follow-Up to Ctrl". Mail & Guardian. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
  34. ^ Aswad, Jem (December 11, 2023). "SZA's New Album Lana: Everything We Know So Far". Variety. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
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