Maps of Music

S (2013)

Where the lyrics of S take you, and where it was really made.

SZA self-released this EP on April 10, 2013, before Top Dawg Entertainment signed her in July of that year.

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S: second extended play by American singer SZA
Self-released on April 10, 2013
Follows the debut EP See.SZA.Run (2012)
Multiple producers, including Zodiac, Patrick Lukens, Brandun DeShay, WNDRBRD, Waren Vaughn and Felix Snow
Characterized as an alt-R&B album
Production described as "twists and mutates"
Eight tracks: Castles, Terror.Dome, Aftermath, The Odyssey, Pray, Ice.Moon, Wings, Kismet

SZA first met Top Dawg Entertainment members at the CMJ Music Marathon in 2011
Her boyfriend's clothing company sponsored a show featuring Kendrick Lamar
A friend at the show presented early SZA songs to TDE president Terrence "Punch" Henderson
See.SZA.Run released October 29, 2012, with production from Brandun DeShay, among others
Top Dawg Entertainment announced plans in June 2013 to sign two more artists
SZA was announced as signed to the label on July 14, 2013

Recording began in early 2013
In May 2013, SZA revealed work with producers Holy Other and Emile Haynie
Haynie had previously worked with Lana Del Rey and Kid Cudi
SZA met Holy Other through mutual friends and the pair began working together after sharing a studio
SZA met producer Felix Snow through a mutual friend
In a June 2014 interview, SZA said Terror.Dome, Castles and Wings were recorded the night before the EP was released
SZA described 2013 as a difficult year with many personal changes

Solána Imani Rowe was born November 8, 1989, in St. Louis, Missouri, and raised in Maplewood, New Jersey.
She attended Columbia High School and later Delaware State University before dropping out to pursue music.
Her stage name SZA was inspired by the Five Percent Nation and the Supreme Alphabet.

She self-released the EPs See.SZA.Run (2012) and S (2013) before signing with Top Dawg Entertainment in 2013.
Her debut album Ctrl (2017) was critically acclaimed and topped several year-end lists.
"All the Stars" (2018) with Kendrick Lamar earned Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations.
"Kiss Me More" with Doja Cat (2021) won her first Grammy Award.
Her second album SOS (2022) spent 100 weeks in the Billboard 200 top ten, and "Kill Bill" topped the Billboard Hot 100.
"Luther" with Kendrick Lamar became her longest-running US number-one song.
She has won seven Grammy Awards in total.

Adam Kivel of Consequence of Sound gave the EP a positive review
Kivel praised the musical direction and called the work sincere and "cool"
Kivel wrote that SZA's courage proves "she's equally as aware of her strengths as she is the potential for constant maturation and growth"

The Italian Wikipedia entry says the EP was acclaimed by critics for the singer's vocals, music and artistic direction after release

Released as a self-produced independent EP on April 10, 2013
Track listing includes eight songs with sample credits for Fleetwood Mac, Rosemary's Baby and Eartha Kitt

Castles samples Everywhere, written by Christine McVie and performed by Fleetwood Mac
Terror.Dome and Kismet (Outro) contain snippets from the 1968 horror film Rosemary's Baby
The Odyssey contains a sample of an interview with Eartha Kitt from the 1982 documentary All By Myself - The Eartha Kitt Story
SZA promoted the release with a music video for Ice Moon, directed by Lemar & Dauley
SZA described Felix Snow as "completely not the textbook producer"