When SZA released SOS in December 2022, it was clear that this was not just a second album. It was an emotional and sonorous experiment in which R&B mixed with pop punk, soul, and alternatives. With SOS: Lana (Deluxe), released on December 20, 2024, not only does the artist expand her vision, but finishes it with almost maniacal care, making the album a true cosmos unto itself. With 14 new tracks, bringing the total tracklist to 38 songs (and later, on February 9th 2025, to 42 with the release of the last official version of the album), this deluxe edition is not a minor addition, but a fully conscious and organic extension.
Step by step into Lana
The album’s name, LANA, is a shortened moniker stemming from the SZA’s real name which is Solana. As promised, though, it’s essentially a brand-new album with new tracks, including the hits Drive, together with the music video directed by Bradley J. Calder and starring actor Ben Stiller, and Saturn, with which SZA won Best R&B Song at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards, and was nominated for Best R&B Performance. It also features previously teased songs like Diamond Boy (DTM) and BMF. The new tracks move between introspection and abstract narration. And as always, SZA continues to inspire and connect deeply with fans worldwide through her music about love, self-discovery and empowerment.
In her deluxe album, Kendrick Lamar shows up on 30 for 30, just weeks after SZA guested on two tracks for his album GNX, with the songs Luther and Gloria. They have a long history of collaborations. From the song Babylon in 2014 to All The Stars (on the soundtrack of Black Panther) and beyond, their bond has grown artistically. And from April to August 2025, they will tour together with the Grand National Tour across North America and Europe. she also discussed possibly teaming up with Lamar for a joint project. Here is what she said about it:
“I would love that, I think that would be amazing. He’s such a genius. And a part of his genius is like him being so elusive and so mysterious and I love it.”
From: SZA turns to acting in One of Them Days – Sherry Show TV (January 8 2025)
Back to the origins
With SOS Deluxe: LANA, SZA expands her sound universe, but ideally closes a circle started in 2017 with CTRL, a raw, sincere, chaotic album in which she talked about inadequacy, jealousy, fluid relationships. It was the diary of a twenty-year-old trying to survive her heart. Now, there has been an evolution: SZA tells the story of pain with lucidity, plays with musical genres with ease, and builds a world made of emptiness and personal revenge.
Here is her Spotify account for those who are curious to listen to her masterpieces:
In the next article, we turn the spotlight on an essential figure of contemporary hip-hop: Kendrick Lamar. From Compton’s early mixtapes to world stages, we’ll explore how his career has become a powerful, political and deeply personal narrative.
💡 Stay tuned on r&b(ite) this! – the next story is already here, ready to be heard.
