SZA Speaks Out Against Being Labeled as R&B Solely Based On Race: ‘It’s Reductive’

SZA recently addressed the issue of her music being pigeonholed into a single genre, highlighting how this limits her artistic expression. In an interview with Dazed published on Wednesday, the singer emphasized her disdain for labels.

“The only reason I’m defined as an R&B artist is because I’m Black,” the New Jersey singer said. “It’s almost a little reductive because it doesn’t allow space to be anything else or try anything else. Justin Bieber is not considered an R&B artist; he is a pop artist who makes R&B, folk music, or whatever his heart desires.

“I simply just want to be allowed the same opportunity to make whatever I want without a label, [without it being] based on the color of my skin, or the crew that I run with, or the beats that I choose. I want ‘F2F’ to be seen as what it is. I want ‘Nobody Gets Me’ to be seen as what it is. I want ‘Kill Bill’ to be seen as what it is.”

She added: “At the same time, it’s nothing to get bent out of shape about because it’s just how people are processing you. As long as I don’t process myself that way. I don’t necessarily box myself into anything. I’m just trying to make music, trying to vibe out and enjoy the experience.”