SZA Explains Why Doja Cat’s Guest Feature on ‘Shirt’ Didn’t Happen

SZA called into HOT 97 on Tuesday (Dec. 6) to talk through her upcoming album S.O.S and clear the air on the Doja Cat collab that didn’t come together.

Originally, SZA hinted while performing at Mad Cool Festival in July that Doja Cat would possibly appear on what became the album’s lead single, “Shirt.” However, when the song finally dropped at the end of October, her pal was nowhere to be found on the track.

“She had surgery, she had to have that emergency, like, vocal cord surgery and she wasn’t ready in the time that we needed to get the song done,” the recent Billboard cover star shared with host Nessa. “There was a crossfire between, I think, her management and my management and they had told us it was done, but it wasn’t actually done.

“It was just a lot of confusion,” she continued, “but don’t know. I hope for the best, and I’m still, like, a major fan of her and her artistry. And I think she’s so incredible and I would love to get her on the deluxe [version].”

Previously the duo struck Grammy gold with their 2021 collab “Kiss Me More” off Doja’s Planet Her, which won the award for best pop duo/group performance, and also scored additional nominations for record of the year and song of the year.

The R&B star also opened up about upcoming album S.O.S. “I just want what’s good, that’s it. I literally just want what’s good. Or what tells a new side of me … and isn’t redundant,” she told Nessa about the approach she took to crafting her long-awaited follow-up to 2017’s Ctrl.

As for how she avoids that redundancy, the singer explained, “The sonics dictate that, the way you express it and over what beats you choose to express it and, like, that type of s–t. You know, the subject matter, that kind of dictates your perspective sometimes. Like what perspective you take on the issue itself.”

Watch SZA’s full interview ahead of S.O.S dropping this Friday (Dec. 9) below.