SZA is arguably the biggest artist on Top Dawg Entertainment and one of the biggest artists in the world, with her long-awaited sophomore album reaching platinum status and staying on top of the Billboard Hot 200 for nearly two months. However, SZA recently revealed that TDE was not her top choice for a label, and she wanted to join Tyler, The Creator’s Odd Future collective, before signing with Top Dawg.
SZA made the revelation in a New York Times article where she said she wanted to be a part of the LA-based collective and was putting out songs of her freestyling over OF beats. “Quiet as it’s kept, I wanted to be with like, Odd Future.” SZA said, “I felt more like a Clancy girl.”
Christian Clancy and his wife, Kelly Clancy, were the founders of 4 Strikes Management, the group that managed Odd Future and Frank Ocean. SZA said that when she moved out to LA, she would hang out with TDE affiliates and Mac Miller. She went on to say that “Punch believed in me” and went on to sign with TDE in 2013, making her the first woman signed to the label.
Who knows how SZA’s career would have gone had she joined Odd Future? Surely she’d still be one of the biggest artists from the group, on par with Tyler, The Creator, and Frank Ocean, but who’s to say her sound wouldn’t have changed if she joined the collective?
