SZA calls out fans’ ‘weird’ behavior after they shame her for being ‘big’ and getting BBL surgery, which she has admitted to regretting

SZA has taken the mantle in a long line of R&B superstars whose lives seamlessly mesh with their music. The upsides to that are record-breaking sales, fame, and awards; the downsides are a parasocial fanbase that often finds ways to get on her nerves by constantly commenting on her body, relationships, and overstepping just about every boundary SZA tries to set.

The COVID quarantine era was tough for everyone. It disrupted daily life, impacting mental health, incomes, and even mortality. For SZA, it was an especially challenging time — she was grieving the loss of her grandmother, battling eating disorders, and dealing with depression. Yet, for some of her fans, this is an era they miss.

A fan page recently posted a video from that time of SZA in the backyard of her childhood home, upcycling one of her mother’s old skirts. That post, in isolation, would’ve been fine. SZA herself admitted in a later post that she was masking her struggles, making it impossible for fans to know. But what made the interaction sinister was a commenter somehow tying the video to SZA getting a BBL. That’s when SZA finally put her foot down, retorting, “Y’all say weird s–t like this and wonder why I’m different and don’t feel comfortable w y’all anymore.”

SZA has already been open about her complicated feelings toward her BBL procedure. While her feelings were initially marked by regret, in a recent interview, she discussed how she feels about it now, years after getting it and repeatedly addressing it in her music and previous interviews. She simply shared that at this point of her life she’s neither ashamed nor proud of her BBL — it’s just part of her lore now. Yet fans keep trying to build a mountain out of this ant hill. 

The real issue here is a tale as old as the concept of a pop star: after the release of her record-breaking sophomore album SOS, SZA outgrew her relatively small audience and became one of the biggest superstars in the world — as the commenter alluded to by saying, “before she got big.” Her music suddenly belonged to everyone, not just the early fans who were first in line — and to unevolved fans, that’s a cardinal sin.

Regardless of what these fans think, things are only looking up for SZA and her artistry. She finally released the deluxe version of her Grammy-winning album SOS, calling it SOS: LANA. She has another album on the way and is co-headlining a stadium tour with the biggest rapper in the world, Kendrick Lamar. The release of LANA has made SZA more forthcoming than usual, even by her standards of being an open book. She’s been on X and Instagram clarifying just about every miniature thing going on in her life. But perhaps the most refreshing thing to hear is that she feels this new era is about healing.

Commentary on SZA’s life, work, and body will never stop. She’s one of the defining artists of her generation, and for better or worse, that means she’s always going to be a topic of discussion. We’re just glad she’s defending herself more instead of letting the hurt and humiliation people try to put her through fester.