SZA’s not playing. Her new video for ‘Kill Bill’, which was released on the 10th January, pays homage to director Quentin Tarantino’s film of the same name. Taking on the role of the fierce ruthless Bride, originally played by Tarantino’s muse Uma Thurman, SZA literally slays in the video coming across as playful as she teasingly licks her dead ex’s heart. The queen of modern R&B teased the video via her Instagram reels on the 29th December exciting her fans with its promise of leather jumpsuits, motorcycles, katanas, and of course just a little bit of blood.
With the video trending at number six for music on YouTube and receiving over 3.3M views within a day of its release it’s safe to say SZA has yet again excelled at enthralling fans with her creative endeavours. Christian Breslauer, who has worked with artists such as The Weeknd, Lil Nas X, Dojo Cat, Lizzo, Anitta, and Lil Baby, directed the video.
Beginning sweetly, the video for ‘Kill Bill’ starts with SZA and her boyfriend in a trailer, which is reminiscent of the trailer Bill’s brother Budd (played by the genius Michael Madsen) lives in. After being given a tiny teddy and a note in which she is unceremoniously dumped by her man she is then shot at by a shooting squad organised by her ex. SZA survives the brutal attack and is driven by icon Vivica A. Fox, who played the formidable Vernita Green in Kill Bill: Volume 1, to a warehouse where she plots her revenge. She practices the kill expertly decapitating a dummy, and then slips into a skin-tight black and red leather jumpsuit – a cute twist on Uma Thurman’s unforgettable yellow and black number. Jumping on a motorbike with a katana in hand our anti-hero speeds to a Japanese bar where she kicks some yakuza henchman butt Bride-style. Like the animated flashback segment in Kill Bill: Volume 2 the music video depicts the build-up to SZA’s revenge in a cool cartoon style. SZA’s exacts vengeance by ripping her ex’s heart out an allusion to the five-point palm exploding heart technique the Bride uses to kill bill. The end of the video features a short sexy sequence of SZA singing ‘Seek & Destroy’ whilst seductively hanging in a shibari – could this be a teaser for a new video?
The soon-to-be pop R&B classic ‘Kill Bill’ has a captivating melody created with groovy bass, synthesizers, and SZA singing about her murderous plans in a honey-sweet voice. The song is the fifth single from SZA’s second album SOS and was released as a single after the album on the 10th January. The track has been a huge success reaching over 150M streams on Spotify in a month and is in the top ten in over ten territories worldwide.
Fans have waited for SZA’s second LP since her debut CTRL burst onto the scene in 2017. Her debut stunned fans of R&B and she received high praise for her blunt confessional lyrics and her unique vocal style that oscillates between a soft rasp and a piercing falsetto. Last month the long wait ended and five years after CTRL SZA gifted us SOS.
SZA collaborated with iconic vocalists such as Don Toliver, Phoebe Bridges, and Travis Scott, as well as sampling the late great Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Björk on SOS. She also worked with songwriters such as Babyface and Lizzo. Though the album is a mammoth at 23 tracks long itdisplays cohesiveness and SZA’s status as an artist who only produces the highest quality music. The album is mainly R&B but its flirtations with soft ballads, pop punk, and gospel music are what make the album feel fresh and exciting.
Other music videos from the album display SZA’s devilish dabbling with violence and dealing with the betrayal she faces from unworthy suitors. The video for third single ‘Shirt’ stars the singer and Sorry to Bother You actor LaKeith Stanfield playing Bonnie and Clyde-esque gangster who have a blast on a spree of murder until our heroine is deceived by her lover. SZA reveals her more vulnerable side, however, in the music video for the soft rock ballad ‘Nobody Gets Me’ which features her pouring her heart out on top of a building filmed in black and white.
Words By: Molly Sutherland
Header Image: @sza
