SZA Named Billboard Woman of the Year

Billboard announced today that Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter SZA will be honored with the 2023 Woman of the Year Award at the Billboard Women in Music Awards on Wednesday, March 1 at the YouTube Theater at Hollywood Park in Los Angeles, CA.

Hosted by Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning writer and actress Quinta Brunson, the annual event will recognize music's rising stars and A-List artists, creators, producers and executives for their contributions to the industry and community.

"Since she burst onto the scene in 2017, SZA has defied genres and continually released raw, powerful songs which have landed her music on the Billboard charts," said Hannah Karp, Billboard's Editorial Director. "The release of her latest album, 'SOS' has solidified her as a distinct force in contemporary R&B, and catapulted her into superstardom. We can't wait to honor her as Woman of the Year."

Born in St. Louis and raised in Maplewood, NJ, genre-defying, and Grammy Award-winning recording artist SZA released her long-awaited sophomore album "SOS" on December 9, 2022. Instantly and universally met with acclaim, SOS debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, earning SZA her first No. 1 on the chart.

With over 400 million streams in the US during release week, "SOS" became the second largest streaming week for a female artist and third largest of 2022 among all albums. Several tracks dominated song charts and playlists across digital service providers, with standout tracks "Kill Bill" and "Nobody Gets Me" landing at No. 3 and No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, respectively. "Kill Bill" is SZA's first No. 1 Global hit on Spotify and Apple Music and peaked at No. 2 on the YouTube Trending Music chart.

In 2017, SZA released her major label debut album "Ctrl." Revered for its raw and honest lyrics, it landed at No. 1 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart, No. 2 on the R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart and No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart, according to Nielsen Music.

The now RIAA-certified 3x Platinum album received five Grammy nominations in 2018 and more than half the songs on Ctrl are currently certified multi-Platinum and Gold. Ctrl remains on the Billboard 200 chart since its release in 2017 and holds the record for the longest run for any Black female artist's debut album. In 2022 alone it sold over 600,000 units and is the 10th best-selling female album this year in the country and 50th best-selling album in 2022 overall.

Since the release of "Ctrl," SZA has won various awards including a 2022 Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Kiss Me More" with Doja Cat, Billboard Music Awards' Top R&B Female Artist, BET Awards' Best New Artist, BET Soul Train Awards' Best R&B/Soul Female Artist and Best New Artist, MTV Video Music Awards' Best Visual Effects for the "All The Stars" with Kendrick Lamar, and NAACP Image Awards' Outstanding New Artist. In 2019, she won NAACP Image Awards' Outstanding Duo or Group for "All The Stars" with Kendrick Lamar and Outstanding Soundtrack/Compilation for the Black Panther Soundtrack. SZA also received the Rulebreaker Award at the 2019 Billboard Women in Music Awards.

To this day, SZA continues to set the standard on creativity and songwriting, while shattering records with over 7.2 billion streams worldwide across all platforms.

Billboard's Woman of the Year Award has become one of the music industry's highest honors. Previous artists named Woman of the Year include Olivia Rodrigo, Cardi B, Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, Madonna, Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift.

SZA will join the previously announced lineup of powerhouse women shaping the music landscape. Becky G will receive the Impact Award presented by American Express; Doechii will receive the Rising Star Award presented by Honda; Ivy Queen will receive the Icon Award; Kim Petras will receive the Chartbreaker Award; Latto will receive the Powerhouse Award; Lainey Wilson will receive the Rulebreaker Award; Lana Del Rey will receive the Visionary Award; TWICE will receive the Breakthrough Award. Performances, celebrity presenters and more will be announced at a later date.

Tickets to attend the Women in Music Awards are on sale to the public now here. Prices range from $85 - $275. The 2023 Women in Music Awards will also stream live; more details about the livestream will be announced soon.

Sponsors for the 2023 Women in Music Awards include: American Express, presenter of the Impact Award, Honda, presenter of the Rising Star Award, Mugler, Nationwide, Bose, and Smirnoff.

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