SZA Admits She Pretends To Be Future And Frank Ocean In The Studio: “It’s Easier To Be Me Through Their Eyes”

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Jeff Kravitz / Contributor via Getty Images, Mike Coppola / Staff via Getty Images, and Prince Williams / Contributor via Getty Images

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SZA, Frank Ocean, Future

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SZA’s highly anticipated third studio album, LANA, is on the way. Though she hasn’t shared much since confirming its release back in September, the Top Dawg Entertainment signee opened up a bit about her songwriting process during a Monday (Oct. 21) chat with Kendrick Lamar for Harper’s Bazaar.

While most of the talk was focused on the Compton rapper’s banner year, “Not Like Us” and revisiting his childhood, he circled back to SZA toward the end of their conversation. There, the “Love Galore” artist reflected on writing a song in the summer of 2023 that she just couldn’t put out because it was “too honest.”

“When I’m in the studio, it hurts too much sometimes. Maybe that’s why I tap in and pretend to be other people,” she shared. “That’s why I’m pretending to be you or pretending to be Frank [Ocean] or pretending to be Future because it’s easy. It’s easier to be me through their eyes than it is to sit with some of the really harsh things that I say about myself to myself.”

“I guess I want to say nicer things about myself. So, I’m like, I guess I shouldn’t look through my eyes. I should look through somebody else’s,” SZA added. The singer-songwriter later reflected on hearing 2022’s Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers and how it encouraged her to “strip the ego from the bottom.”

Unfortunately, SZA and Ocean have yet to formally collaborate. However, the Blonde artist previously covered her smash hit “The Weekend.” Future, on the other hand, has worked with the St. Louis native on tracks like DJ Khaled’s “BEAUTIFUL” and Travis Scott’s “TELEKINESIS.”

As far as solo music goes, SZA debuted “Saturn” back in February alongside live, sped-up, acapella and instrumental iterations of the record. Currently, there is no word on whether it will appear on LANA, which has already been leaked once.