After two turbulent non-starts and many Twitter memes that may well have made it all worth it, the Babyface and Teddy Riley ‘Verzuz’ stand-off finally went ahead this past Monday, 20 April 2020. The much awaited ‘Verzuz’ battle was a throwback R&B dream. Babyface and Teddy Riley are almost undeniably the most prolific hitmakers of the 80s and 90s, certainly in R&B music. Their contribution to the catalogue of those decades is, quite frankly, astounding to comprehend.
It is therefore no surprise that over 500,000 people tuned in for the event, breaking Instagram Live’s record. (Interestingly, the record was 400,000 for their fraught attempt a few days prior). And this time, both Babyface and Teddy Riley DELIVERED. They rightly showed off their work as the stellar catalogues they are. Billboard has an interesting scorecard over here. (SPOILER: it basically says it was a tie).
If you missed it or just want a really good dose of throwback R&B, get into a playlist of the Babyface and Teddy Riley ‘Verzuz’ battle round for round, song for song, below. All 20, well 19.5 rounds plus bonuses from each of their own lives after the battle. Enjoy the ride through R&B classics.
