SZA Opens Up About Her 2020 Pandemic Struggles: “I Was Hella Depressed and Masking”

SZA just opened up to fans about how tough life was during the COVID-19 pandemic, and she didn’t hold back.

Reflecting on those dark days via Twitter, the singer wrote, “COVID was hard… my granny had just died. I was hella depressed and masking. Not eating. Overworking out. But I always had my childhood home to escape to and get lost. Still do. Grateful to be in a much better mental space now. S/o to those days tho.”

Covid was hard … my granny had just died .. I was hella depressed n masking . Not eating. Over working out . but I always had my childhood home to n get lost . Still do . Grateful to be in a much better mental space now. ❤️ s/o to those days tho❤️

— SZA (@sza) December 30, 2024

This raw honesty isn’t new for SZA. Back in 2020, she spoke on how anxiety affected her music-making during a chat with Apple Music.

“I’ve been making a s**t ton of music. If you leave it up to me, ain’t no telling when s**ts gonna come out because I have anxiety…I’ve never felt so loose in the world before,” the “CTRL” star explained on the platform.

Fast forward to today, and the 35-year-old is in a better place. Her newly released “SOS Deluxe: Lana,” a long-awaited expansion of her 2022 album “SOS,” has propelled the original record back to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.

This marks the album’s 11th week at the top, the first since March 2023, and an exciting way to kick off the new year.