SZA’s openness has long been one of the reasons fans connect with her so deeply. Throughout her career, she has never hesitated to speak honestly about her experiences, sharing both the highs and the struggles she’s faced in her personal life and music journey.
Most recently, the singer took to social media to reveal that she has been formally diagnosed with autism. “Finally took the time n got formally diagnosed .. Asperger’s / high functioning autism / smarter than u n****s so stop playing in my face cause pattern recognition told me and I WILL get to the bottom if it thanks,” she wrote. “Pretty sure this is why I’m taking Ai so personally btw lol. And also why I’m in every comment section.”
Alongside the post, SZA shared documents from her evaluation, which stated that she “presents with a history, patterning of scores, and behaviors on examination that are quite consistent with Autism Spectrum Disorder.”
“Solana has a qualitative impairment in reciprocal social interaction, as both self-reported and observed by this examiner. Her mother also noted these traits when Solana was a child, although they were not as evident,” the paperwork continues. “Solana also has marked sensory defensiveness. She is sensitive to feel of clothing, sound, taste, and touch. She has developed numerous admirable coping strategies for ‘passing’ when in social situations. This takes an enormous amount of energy for her and leaves her feeling quite anxious.”
The evaluation further explained that SZA, whose first name is Solana, experiences challenges with reciprocal social interaction, based on both her own account and the examiner’s observations. It also noted that her mother recognized similar traits during her childhood, although they were less noticeable at the time.
According to the report, SZA has significant sensory sensitivities, including reactions to certain fabrics, sounds, tastes, and physical touch. It also highlighted that she has developed effective coping mechanisms to help her blend into social settings, though doing so requires a tremendous amount of effort and often leaves her feeling highly anxious.
One of the latest instances of SZA speaking out against AI came in June, when she criticized Suno and Diplo over their reported ties to the company. She has previously voiced her frustration about her music being used to train AI software, but this time she focused on what she believes is the exploitation of Black creatives through artificial intelligence.
“We make up 13% of the American population yet influence the world w our sound and perspective. I AINT HEARD A WHITE AI SONG YET…We have no protection in legislature medical or creative. The easiest to steal from,” she wrote.
