SZA Quiets Rumor She Was Paid Six Figures To Be Justin Bieber's Coachella Backup

BY Zachary Horvath
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68th GRAMMY Awards - Backstage
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 01: SZA attends the 68th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 01, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
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SZA is never afraid to lash out and that's being proven again amid rumors about her being paid thousands to be Justin Bieber's backup.

Justin Bieber's $10 million Coachella fee for this year is the highest out of the three headliners. As a result, it was going to be pretty unlikely that he would back out of the festival. But backups are always a must as nothing is truly guaranteed in this business.

There was some cause to pause in JB's case especially given his recent health issues both physical and mental. As a result, it seems folks online were generating rumors about who the Canadian singer's stand in was going to be.

SZA's name was thrust into this discussion, with the allegation even claiming that she was being paid a hefty sum to be Bieber's emergency replacement. To be slightly more specific, she was going to get a six-figure check to fill this role.

However, according to the SOS artist herself, that couldn't be further from the truth.

As caught by Buzzing Pop and Bossip, the TDE signee firmly quieted this rumor under a post alleging this news. "Lmao who made this up? I've seen this 4 times now. I'm in New York no one paid me a dime. Wishing everyone the best [red heart emoji]," she wrote.

Perhaps she's there recording her new album, which she's been teasing as of recently.

Justin Bieber's Coachella Performance

But overall, it doesn't seem like SZA was offended or anything like that. She just wanted to put an end to it for the sake of clearing the air.

It sounds like she's also supporting Justin Bieber, whose first of two shows at Coachella has proved to be divisive.

If you didn't see it, the hitmaker, about halfway through his set, whipped out his MacBook and played various music videos for his older songs.

Some have criticized it for being unprofessional and lazy, whereas others feel it was refreshing and personal. Many of his fans have grown up with Bieber since his teenage years and seeing him look back at his work from that era was moving for the die-hards.

While it's been controversial, we have to imagine many are looking forward to seeing what he'll do this coming Saturday.

About The Author
Zachary Horvath is one of the Music Freelance News Writers at HotNewHipHop and has held that title since August 2023. Prior to this position, he held another freelance gig covering local high school football, girls and boys varsity basketball, in addition to recapping Cleveland Cavaliers games remotely. He's taken the previous experience and used it to become a jack of all trades at HotNewHipHop. Zach has thoroughly enjoyed tackling some of the trending topics in sports, with a larger focus on hip-hop and pop culture. Some of those include Bronny James's draft stock, a multitude of angles swirling around the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef, as well as Diddy's arrest and lawsuits. Separate from the headlines that everyone wants to hear about, he was fortunate enough to help spread Zaytoven's current thoughts at the time around mid-December in 2023. Even though being able to give his expertise on these stories is fulfilling, being able to share his passion for releases trumps that ever so slightly. Having the chance to express his excitement indirectly about what he thinks our readers should be checking out/revisiting grows his passion for writing that much more.

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