Review: SZA’s “SOS” Deserves a Listen

The singer’s new album was six years in the making. Do its Billboard Top 5 tracks measure up?

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Photo by Zuzanna Adamczyk on Unsplash

A photographer captures Sza’s name in lights.

Hannah Ruley, Staff Writer

On December 9, 2022, Sza’s new album, “SOS” came out. Her fans went crazy since her previous album, “Ctrl,” was released in 2017. The album is about dealing with things that are out of your control and moving on. “SOS” has more than 20 tracks, and I will be reviewing the top five most-listened-to songs according to billboard.com.

#1:  Kill Bill   

This song being in the number one spot makes sense, because it is very popular on TikTok. The song is about exactly what it sounds like. It finds Sza after a breakup, and she is saying throughout the song that she “might kill her ex.” But if you look past the gruesome premise, the tune is so catchy. I can see why people gravitate towards this song. All things considered, this song definitely deserves to be in the top five listened-to songs on “SOS.”

#2:  Nobody Gets Me 

This song is about not wanting to break up with someone because they are the only person that really understands you. Listening to the song, you can hear the pain in the singer’s voice. The music is very guitar-heavy and slow, which contributes to the sadness of the song. I definitely think the song is worth listening to. But for me, personally, it may not be top-five-worthy. 

#3:  Blind  

The chorus and post-chorus parts of this song are also popular on TikTok. But it wasn’t a favorite of mine when I listened. The song speaks about being ‘blind’ to the good parts of life.  The tune was a little too choppy for my taste. Even though it is in the top five, I don’t think that it is worth listening to in the grand scheme of things. 

#4:  Shirt 

Going into listening to this song, I had high expectations because of how many good reviews I had seen. Even so, it lived up to my expectations. The song was super catchy and the lyrics had a whole lot of meaning that you wouldn’t expect to have in a song with this kind of music behind it. The song describes a person who feels lost in a relationship that is not healthy. “Shirt” is definitely worth listening to, and I think that it should be higher in the top five. 

#5:  Love  Language

Before I talk any more about this song, I just have to say that I really liked it. The music behind Sza’s singing is captivating; it was my favorite part of the song. That is saying something, because I usually gravitates more to the lyrics. To give these lyrics the attention they deserve, the song is about searching for a relationship with better communication, and using “love language.” This song 100% deserves to be in the top five. It was one of my favorites when I first listened and it is still one of my favorites. 

Do these songs deserve their top-five status? I think for the most part they do. Some were not as good as others, but that doesn’t outweigh the overall beauty of the album. So I would 100% recommend listening to the album!