SZA, “Shirt” | Track Review 🎵

Matters of the heart plague Grammy-winning R&B singer SZA in her excellent first solo single of 2022, “Shirt.”

“Blood stain on my shirt / New bitch on my nerves / Old nigga got curved / Going back on my word / Damn, bitch, you so thirsty.” Woo! Now that’s an assertive chorus right there, 🎙 SZA! The 🏆 Grammy-winning R&B artist returns with a bang on 🎵 “Shirt”.  “Shirt” has been floating around for a couple of years, with an excerpt shared as early as Fall 2020.  Now, after being teased, “Shirt” gets it just due.

So, what does “Shirt” encompass? Matters of the heart, of course.  SZA, of course, appears to be on the losing end. Basically, she’s let this man totally mess her up.  In the chorus, excerpted above, she goes on to sing, “Still don’t know my worth / Still stressin’ perfection / Let you all in my mental / Got me lookin’ too desperate / Damn (You ain’t deserve).”  The verses and the pre-chorus set up the anxious, bothered feelings of the singer. She is self-aware, at least, asserting, “Feel the taste of resentment / Simmer in my skin.”  While we don’t wish SZA any of the love pain she’s experiencing, it’s sweet music to our ears.  So is the rhythmic production by 🎛 Rodney Jerkins and Freaky Rob, which gives her the perfect inspiration to perform, beyond the sus, seemingly unrequited love itself.

Final Thoughts 💭

All in all, SZA delivers the goods on 🎵 “Shirt”. Yes, she’s in a sketchy place with the universal four-letter-word but there’s nothing sketchy about the long-awaited single.  She sings well, the theme is relatable, and it’s well-produced.  The bigger question is, when does her sophomore album drop – it’s been a long time coming!

🎙 SZA • 🎵 “Shirt” • 🏷 RCA • 🗓 10.28.22

[📷: Brent Faulkner, The Musical Hype, OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay, RCA]