SZA’s Bouncy Grammys Curls Have been Impressed By a ’90s Icon

Have you ever heard that effortlessness is in? From a visual magnificence standpoint, no less than. It is nonetheless cool to care about issues and do them nicely, whether or not meaning treating our pure hair texture with respect or displaying gratitude throughout award present acceptance speeches.

After skipping the crimson carpet on the 2026 Grammys, SZA arrived simply in time to just accept her two awards. She wore a plunging crimson Kenzo costume embroidered with flowers for the event, letting her darkish curls spring free from their heart half.

Per ordinary, celeb hairstylist Devante Turnbull was answerable for the singer’s beautiful locks. Forward, the artist tells us all in regards to the look, together with the inspiration and (should you’re fortunate sufficient to have that texture!) how you can make it occur at residence.

SZA’s 2026 Grammy Awards Hair

In line with the present magnificence panorama, Turnbull’s imaginative and prescient was to maintain issues as pure (see: effortless-looking) as attainable.

“One of many winter traits I needed to faucet into was actually embracing the pure curl sample. That meant utilizing much less warmth, focusing extra on hydration, and sticking to routines that improve what’s already there as an alternative of attempting to power the hair into one thing it’s not,” he tells Byrdie solely. “Within the colder months particularly, moisture is vital, so I needed the hair to really feel delicate, wholesome, and vigorous. A key product was The Chris McMillan Dry Texture Spray. This spray creates immediate quantity and texture, serving to to construct much more fullness.”

Above all else, he says it was necessary to maintain the hair easy and true to who SZA is.

“SZA is understood for her large textured hair as she is an artist that helped carry extra visibility to embracing pure textures in mainstream areas,” he explains.

The Inspiration

Whereas ensuring their temper board felt true to SZA’s id, additionally they pulled a little bit of inspiration from the character Joan on Girlfriends, performed by Tracee Ellis Ross.

“The inspiration positively got here from the form and size that Joan had on that ’90s sitcom,” Turnbull says. “That iconic shoulder-length hair felt like the proper match for her customized Kenzo costume. On the tail finish of all of it we needed most quantity to enrich the extent of drama the costume introduced.”

The Course of

“Crimson carpet-ready hair begins with the fitting merchandise,” Turnbull says. That meant a set of Chris McMillan merchandise “for award-show fashion that lasts all night time.”

Although she did not make the carpet, the concept nonetheless stood. And there are after events to attend anyway, proper?

This is the way it all went down:

“I began with The Chris McMillan Mousse on towel-dried hair to boost texture and construct quantity. I adopted it with The Chris McMillan Gel to seal within the product, assist sculpt the form, and management frizz,” explains Turnbull. “Whereas the hair was nonetheless damp, I used the scrunching methodology to additional outline the curl. I subtle the hair and used a small quantity of The Chris McMillan Mousse to finger-coil the ends. To construct extra quantity, I used The Chris McMillan Dry Texture Spray—a texture spray that doubles as a mode extender, creating immediate carry.”

Lastly, The Main Hairspray was added to carry the form for the night time, and The Easy and Tame Hair Wand got here in to easy edges and tame flyaways.

Get the Look Your self

In addition to following the routine above, Turnbull has some suggestions that can assist you good the fashion. Let’s begin together with his gel and mousse-centered, curl defining and pure texture locking course of, we could?

“An important tip after making use of product is utilizing the scrunching methodology to essentially carry the curls to life—you may even use an outdated T-shirt to assist with that,” he explains. “It’s greatest to not contact the hair an excessive amount of and let it air-dry.”

Separating these pure curls can be necessary.

“As a result of we needed to keep away from something too ‘good,’ I evenly subtle the hair and gently ran my fingers by means of it to separate a few of the curls, which additionally helped add quantity,” he says. “An important tip is to flip the hair the other way up and focus the spray on the roots, whereas additionally misting all through for balanced quantity.”

His primary trick, although? Hold issues easy.

“Much less is extra. Apply simply sufficient product to get definition with out weighing the hair down,” explains the artist. “You need it to really feel pure, delicate, light-weight, and stuffed with motion. Don’t overthink it—you’ve obtained this!”