The singer tells the students to 'Design your own world right now,' before revealing that when she graduated she refused to attend prom because she wasn't popular enough to bag a date.
- June 5, 2018
AceShowbiz - R&B star SZA gave a motivational speech to graduating students at her old high school in New Jersey on Monday, June 04.
The singer, real name Solana Imani Rowe, spoke and performed during two assembly periods at Columbia High School in Maplewood after she was voted into the institution's hall of fame.
The 27-year-old, who graduated from the school in 2008, performed her hit The Weekend for pupils - despite her ongoing battles with vocal cord problems.
In a speech SZA urged, "Design your own world right now," before revealing that when she graduated she refused to attend prom because she wasn't popular enough to bag a date.
"It starts with trusting yourself, even if people are telling you you're too young to trust yourself," the star added, before telling teenagers to: "find the details and the inner workings of yourself".
She also gave a shout out to her favourite art teacher and explained how her "daydreaming" had helped her become a popstar.
Her appearance at her alma mater, whose teachers also educated Lauryn Hill, came after she was pulled from the line-up of the TDE Championship Tour due to an injury to her vocal cords.
SZA told fans she had been taking steroids to ensure she could perform and after skipping gigs, returned to the stage in New York last Tuesday, May 29.
However, after the gig she expressed fears she had "permanently injured" her voice.
The TDE Championship Tour, which also features Kendrick Lamar and Schoolboy Q, runs until 16 June, when it will come to a close in Pennsylvania.
