As Beyoncé famously pointed out, “America has a problem.” Fellow Grammy winner SZA agrees that there are several issues plaguing the country today, from food and job insecurity to the lack of compassion between people.
The “Kill Bill” singer reflected on what’s been going through her mind lately in a recent interview with CR Fashion Book. She confessed that her preoccupation with some of life’s biggest questions gets in the way of her thinking sometimes.
“I’m just neurotic about everything. I’m neurotic, and I have a lot of anxiety,” the songstress admitted. “So, it just makes me wonder, and I ask, ‘Why?’ a lot, about myself and about everything. I ask, ‘Why is something this way? Why did this happen to me? What could I have done differently? Why do I feel this way?’ I’m constantly asking why. I’m plagued by ‘Why.’”
She drew the connection between her thought process and real-life events that are happening for people across the country every day. She also believes that people’s behaviors have changed at the same time. “It’s hard to not have a scarcity mindset when everything is so f**king scarce, down to eggs and everything else,” she said honestly. “Jobs are scarce. Food is scarce. And now, I think, humanity is scarce. We’re f**king with humanity now. We need to take a break from hypercriticism and give everyone a break from projecting our anger in the comments section.”
She went on to describe just how public perception affects her personally. “Sometimes I wonder if I don’t know how people see me, honestly,” she acknowledged. When reflecting on just how much audiences’ empathy toward entertainers has seemingly deteriorated, she cited another award-winning performer, Jennifer Lawrence.
“People are so cynical nowadays. The other day, I saw some people randomly attacking Jennifer Lawrence. And I was confused as to why,” she said honestly. “And the idea was that she pretends to be relatable, and it’s just a schtick or whatever and she’s not really relatable, it’s an act. And now it makes them angry that she feels relatable. And I was like, ‘This is insane. This is just the way someone is born or the way they behave.’ And then it’s like, you grow to resent them for it.”