SZA Shares Humorous Text Exchange with Punch About Releasing New Music

R&B star SZA has officially parted ways with her longtime manager Terrence “Punch” Henderson, co-president of Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE). The news, initially shared by a fan account on X (formerly Twitter) and further circulated on Instagram, was confirmed by SZA herself through a comment stating, “Nothing to celebrate. The end of an era. I wish him the best heart emoji whatever his choices may be. heart emoji.” This digital confirmation spurred an intense reaction on social media, where Punch, often critiqued for his management style and TDE’s slow music releases, once again found himself under fire. However, SZA stepped in to defend him, tweeting, “And to be clear I love punch deeply! NO ONE should be attacking him or being cruel on my behalf. Sometimes ppl grow apart and that’s okay heart emoji," and urging fans to stay considerate, especially during the holiday season.

Coinciding with the announcement, Punch addressed the online stir through a series of cryptic tweets. He wrote, “Madness, as you know, is like gravity. All it takes is a little push,” followed by, “Also, nothing real can be threatened. Relax ppl. lol.” His attempt to diffuse the situation continued with a light-hearted remark about changing his bio, stating, “SMH. Change your bio and everything goes haywire. Sheesh. I’m beginning to suspect some of you guys don’t fancy me very much.” Punch also tried to shift the discourse back to music by asking followers for their favorite tracks from SZA’s recent project "LANA."

Just days before these developments, SZA had shared a playful text exchange with Punch concerning the release of additional music from her SOS Deluxe edition. In the message, she humorously petitioned to release a few extra tracks, to which Punch suggested spacing them out to let "LANA" breathe, possibly hinting at a Christmas or New Year’s Eve release. Punch humorously responded to the shared screenshot by tweeting, “Aiight somebody get her phone.” On that same day, he celebrated SZA and Kendrick Lamar’s success on the Apple music charts, highlighting the shared achievements and playful rapport between the two despite their professional split.