Before there was Gaga or Taylor, before pussy hats or Beyoncé's "girls in formation," there was an epic all-female music festival created by women fed up with sexism in the music industry: Lilith Fair. This summer, in honor of the festival's twentieth anniversary, we're exploring the history and legacy of the festival, and why the fight for equality in the industry continues today. Read the oral history of Lilith—as told by the women who lived it—and more here.

SZA's debut album, CTRL — which was released June 9 — was a long time coming. But now that it’s finally here, she’s not quite sure she’ll be a musician forever. "I have a short attention span, and I don’t like to do things when they aren’t fun or I can’t grow anymore,” the 26-year-old singer tells us.

Releasing CTRL was a process, so it's easy see why SZA (née Solána Imani Rowe) might want a break. After all, the singer-songwriter took her time to find the right sound and perfect the album. But with pushback from the label, the record remained in limbo for a while. "When I was ready they weren’t, when they weren’t ready I was,” she explains. "It was just us chasing each other." In the end, though, SZA feels like the timing was kismet, and the result is a genre-bending blend of R&B, soul, and psychedelia that lived up to fans' growing anticipation.

Before CTRL’s release, we hung out with SZA in New York City to talk about what it's like to be the only female artist at TDE (her label, Top Dawg Entertainment), her vision for a present-day Lilith Fair, and how she empowers her fans.

Last year, you tweeted that you might quit music and this album could be your last. Do you still feel that way?

Sometimes. Every other day. I don’t know. I have a short attention span, and I don’t like to do things when they aren’t fun or I can’t grow anymore. This is a space where I feel like I’m growing and having a good time. I’m learning a lot, but sometimes it gets to be a lot and I feel like I can’t grow in this space. Like, I have to do something different to grow.

What would you do if you weren’t a musician?

Maybe I’d do something with science. [I studied] science and mass communications. It was easy because I spoke several languages. My dad worked in television, so mass comm just makes sense because that’s what he did.

There was a delay releasing CTRL. Why?

At first it was me trying to figure out a sound, [but then] the label moved it back. It just went back and forth between that: me making different sounds and the label pushing it back. When I was ready, they weren’t; when they weren’t ready, I was. It was funny — it was just us chasing each other. But I think this timing was meant to be.

You collaborate with Kendrick Lamar on "Doves in the Wind." How did that come about?

I try to avoid collaborating with the [TDE crowd] because I feel like it’s the obvious cheat code; we’re signed to the same label. We’ve already done songs together, but we can’t help it. He’s amazing; it just made sense for him to be involved. He’s always helping me level up to be better and to want more.

Some feminists spoke out about Kendrick’s “Humble” and the laced misogyny in tracks...

How is that misogyny if he’s supporting positive body image? I think that’s so weird, and it’s reaching. If you want to support women, you should support all shapes of women. There are more women who are body shamed and who are — I mean, I used to be 200 pounds, and I have stretch marks all over my body. I find more comfort and solace with Kendrick reinforcing that I'm beautiful. I don’t really feel anything misogynistic from that.