SZA: “It’s Not About The Finished Product, It’s About The Process” [Video]

Kicking off June with our fourth episode of “Leaders Of The New Cool,” we caught up with songstress SZA to discuss the excitement surrounding her new Z album. The 24-year-old New Jersey native stands with effortless appeal among the company of hip-hop’s leading West Coast force, Top Dawg Entertainment. With TDE’s male dominated roaster including Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, Jay Rock and Isaiah Rashad, SZA is the new kid on the block with a whole lot of magic up her sleeve. The R&B newcomer has already toured with Little Dragon, opened for Coldplay and took SXSW by storm, all in a year’s time — not bad for a small-town shorty who left her day job at Sephora to pursue music full throttle. With glittery freckles and compelling charm, SZA let us in on what compels her to create, the importance of codirecting her own videos and a few words of advice she received from label mate K.Dot.