SZA Teases Anticipated “LANA” Album With Bizarre Nature Trailer

SZA has spoken. The singer has always been unpredictable when it comes to her album rollouts and promo. She’s been telling fans about the deluxe edition of SOS for close to a year. Well, we officially entered the LANA era on December 9. SZA took to social media to post a bizarre video. It’s not clear what the video is supposed to be at first, but those who watched the whole thing discovered that it’s meant to kick off a new album cycle. We’re getting LANA much sooner than we expected.

The reason fans were initially unsure as to the video’s purpose was its content. It contains no dialogue or text for the bulk of its runtime. Instead, it sees SZA wander through the forest. The singer is filmed from above, and appears to be alone. She then stops walking, squats down, and uses the restroom. We’re left to watch as she finishes up and then walks out of frame. Bizarre? Very. But the text tacked on to the end of the video confirms that SZA is back. The text “LANA (SOS Deluxe)” gets plastered on to the screen. It helps that SZA writes “clock starts now” in the caption.

SZA originally planned to release LANA sooner, but the creative process took over. She explained the unexpected process of this album coming together during an interview with British Vogue. “I think I am making music from a more beautiful place,” she explained. “From a more possible place versus a more angsty place… Piece by piece, my music is shifting because of that, the lighter I get.” In a separate interview, SZA admitted that the album would have come out sooner were it not for leaks. The leaks forced the singer to reconsider the material she had, and reshape the deluxe version of SOS.

She told Billboard that she’s looking forward to closing the book on a particular musical period in her life. “After I do the deluxe, I’m hoping to be able to accept that this chapter is done,” she stated. “I’m looking forward to actually feeling proud of myself and not just smiling and nodding at accolades.” A release date was not provided in the new album trailer. An official announcement, however, suggests that the fans can expect it to be soon.