SZA Responds To Cher’s Mix-Up Involving Luther Vandross At The 2026 Grammys

SZA stated that there are no hard feelings after Cher mistakenly announced Luther Vandross as the winner of the Record of the Year at the 2026 Grammy Awards. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, after she and Kendrick Lamar won the award for “luther,” SZA commented that Cher was “not wrong” and likely had a connection to the late R&B and soul artist.

She noted that the song “luther” samples Vandross’ “If This World Were Mine,” explaining, “We share the frequency of the song.” SZA added, “That’s his frequency that allowed us to win and that allowed it to be memorable, so she’s not wrong and she’s from that era.”

SZA also mentioned, “She probably really knew Luther Vandross. Of course, her brain and her energy is connecting that energy to the energy that we’re sharing. We’re just mooching off of what Luther already gave us, so we’re grateful.”

SZA totally understands Cher’s Luther Vandross mix-up at the #GRAMMYs and the math is mathing. 🤔 pic.twitter.com/zp72EDLIaX

— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) February 2, 2026

During the awards ceremony, when Cher opened the winning envelope, she announced, “And the Grammy goes to… Oh! They told me it was going to be on the prompter. Oh, the Grammy goes to Luther Vandross!” She then corrected herself, saying, “No! Kendrick Lamar!”

At that moment, “luther” began playing, prompting Lamar and others associated with the record to approach the stage. During the acceptance speech, Sounwave, who produced the track, acknowledged Vandross by saying, “First and foremost, let’s give a shout out to the late, great Luther Vandross.”

When Lamar took the microphone, he remarked, “This is what music is about. This is special for me. I gotta take my time ‘cause it’s one of my favorite artists of all time. They granted us the privilege to do our version of it. When we got that clearance, I promise you, we damn-near all dropped a tear.”

Ultimately, the Record of the Year was SZA’s only win at the 2026 Grammys, while Lamar won in all the rap categories, finishing the event as the top winner with five trophies.