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Grammy-winning artist SZA recently took to social media to shed light on her ongoing frustrations regarding unfinished tracks being leaked without permission. In a raw, impassioned plea on X, the 34-year-old songstress voiced her stance that distributing works-in-progress amounts to outright theft of her livelihood.
“Leaking my music is stealing” was the condemnation the singer, whose real name is Solána Imani Rowe, leveled at those distributing incomplete demos. She stressed that her musical craft represents years of dedicated labor and imagination, of which she retains sole rights as creator. SZA vowed to pursue all legal avenues against anyone proven to have disseminated tracks not cleared for release.
This outburst seemed prompted by a long history of preemptive leaks sabotaging her artistic evolution. While no single incident was specified, past verses have found their way online prematurely. Just months ago, in June, an unpolished contribution to Lil Tjay’s “Calling My Phone” surfaced unexpectedly, frustrating her plans.
SZA has opened up about feeling her ability to freely experiment stifled once demos surface without clearance. External pressures can overwhelm her organic artistic direction. She conceded regret at the leak yet gratitude for praise, yet chose to preserve her vision’s integrity.
Such clandestine dissemination threatens the meticulous care SZA invests in meticulously crafting each composition and body of work. As she elucidated to Variety, premature leaks recast works as “less-than-correct version” fans deem their entitlement to propagate against consent, derailing her process and self-belief.
Devoted fans awaiting fresh work from SZA will not wait long, however. She is putting the finishing touches to her imminent album “Lana,” which evolved independently beyond initial plans as a companion to 2020’s “SOS.” Judging by rural-themed Instagram teasers, the project promises to surprise with its unconfined direction upon release on SZA’s schedule.
