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Singer SZA (Solána Imani Rowe) has reportedly parted ways with her longtime manager TDE Punch (Terrence Henderson) just days after dropping the deluxe album LANA (SOS Deluxe). Rumors of a split began on Tuesday, December 24, 2024, when the songstress tweeted:
"N**gas try to sabotage not knowing it only motivates me. Silly goose."
On Christmas Day, fans found that Rowe unfollowed Punch on Instagram. The rumors remain unconfirmed.
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As the rumors spread, internet users were quick to react. One noted the move was a positive one for the songstress, saying:
"W this was like a creative shackle for her."
Many supported the alleged move, noting the delays observed in Rowe's releases. Here are some comments seen under @PopBase's post on X:
"SZA ditched Punch for sabotage, delays, and broken promises. Now she can release music freely," one person stated.
"if we’re honest he was holding her back, im so excited to see what the future has in store for her career with better management," another commented.
"hopefully this means no more messy releases !!" a user remarked.
Others questioned the reason behind the alleged move. Some even joked Rowe would join her former TDE labelmate and frequent collaborator Kendrick Lamar's company, pgLang.
"Kendrick outta there, SZA outta there, we need to get Doechii out next," one wrote.
"What happened, does anyone have the tea?" another questioned.
"Sza going to PG lang," a fan joked.
"12pm. It’s my fault"- TDE Punch about SZA's LANA (SOS Deluxe) releasing late
While it remains unconfirmed whether TDE Punch and SZA parted ways, rumors further spread after they both shared subliminal posts on their respective social media that fans believe were targeting the other.
Punch, for his part, shared posts on X alluding to "crashing out" including one reading:
"It kind of bothers me how the true meaning of “crash out” got diluted and reduced to someone just saying mean things. Random thought."
Additionally, screenshots circulating on popular social media pages like @hollywoodunlocked on Instagram show the Rowe's comments under a post seemingly confirming the news.
One comment shows the singer reportedly saying it was "nothing to celebrate" and that an era has ended. She continued to wish to push her best. In a separate comment, she allegedly asked fans to stop "attacking" Punch and "being cruel" on her behalf, stating she loves him "deeply," but "sometimes ppl grow apart, and that's okay."
When a user questioned Rowe when her songs PSA and Take You Down were releasing, she replied:
"Those were tracks Punch and I spoke about releasing together prior. Obviously he stepped away abruptly so sorting the drop out was a bit tricky. Please Give me a second... they'll be loaded."
According to a 2014 article by Billboard, Rowe and Punch (Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) president) first met during a Kendrick Lamar show at the CMJ New Music Report in 2011. TDE eventually signed her in 2013 (the label's first female artist).
Through the label, SZA dropped her studio projects Ctrl (2017) and SOS (2022), and the latter album's deluxe edition LANA (SOS Deluxe) (2024). However, all of her releases were delayed due to disagreements with Top Dawg executives.
According to a July 2017 article by The Guardian, Crtl was initially scheduled to come out in 2015, while an August 2020 report by Pitchfork suggested SOS was set to drop in 2020. Per Pitchfork, at the time (2020) when questioned about its release, SZA tweeted and soon deleted, "At this point y'all gotta ask punch."
LANA (SOS Deluxe) was scheduled to come out on Friday (December 20, 2024, two years after SOS's release) morning (00:00 hrs) but was delayed till afternoon. At the time, Punch took to his X to write:
"12pm. It's my fault."
Initially, SZA seemed to have accepted the apology and even come to Punch's defense online. She jokingly shared a screenshot of her conversation with Punch to explain that he approved more music soon after LANA's release.
Neither Punch nor SZA has publicly confirmed the rumors.
