Mega pop star SZA has debuted a new song, entitled ‘Shirt’, as part of her live stream event IN BLOOM.
The live stream, which was sponsored by Grey Goose vodka, was the first platform for which the song has seen a full-length release. Previously SZA teased the song through her social media accounts back in 2020, leading it to be picked up on Tik Tok, and later a snippet of the song appeared at the end of her ‘Good Days’ video released in March.
“I feel like IN BLOOM really captures where I’m at right now, especially after a year and a half of lockdown, which is also why it feels like the best place to debut some of my new material,” SZA explained in a press release prior to the event. “I’m so excited for my fans to see this performance.”
It’s been a long four years since the New Jersey-based singer/rapper released her debut LP Ctrl. The artist has kept busy though: singles ‘Hit Different’ and ‘Good Days’ came at the tail end of last year, complete with videos, while SZA was featured on Doja Cat’s ‘Kiss Me More’ from her recent third studio album Planet Her. I’ve seen some reviewers criticise Planet Her for being too contemporary trend chasing pop, which is basically like accusing the Fast and Furious franchise of focusing too much on “family”: it’s not gonna change, and if you don’t like it, then get the hell out.
The preview of ‘Shirt’ occurs at around the 50-minute mark of the live stream, after a fantastic nearly hour-long performance. Also, peep one of the first live performances of the Ctrl track ‘Prom’ at around the 17:30 mark. All in all, it’s good to have SZA back, and hopefully, she’ll be performing live on tour sometime within the next year.
