American singer/songwriter SZA performs genre-blurring R&B influenced by avant-garde jazz, alternative rock, and hardcore rap. Her major-label debut, 2017's Ctrl, helped SZA score the most nominations of any female at the 2018 Grammy awards. In addition, she was the key component on a handful of Top Ten pop hits from the likes of Maroon 5 ("What Lovers Do") and Kendrick Lamar ("All the Stars"). Born Solana Imani Rowe in St. Louis, Missouri in 1990, she was raised in New Jersey, where she excelled in high school gymnastics and cheerleading. After leaving college, Rowe shuffled around different jobs, recording on the side, until a fortuitous meeting in 2011 led to an introduction with Top Dawg Entertainment, home to Kendrick Lamar and ScHoolboy Q. The budding relationship would later bear fruit and help propel SZA into the mainstream.