The unlikeliest of pairings may be going head-to-head in a battle of their biggest hits, and honestly, we kind of hope it happens. On Saturday (May 16th), Akon took to his Instagram story to reveal to his followers that he'd been challenged to a hit battle by the most surprising and non-sensical potential opponent imaginable: Tekashi 6ix9ine.

Erykah Badu and Jill Scott’s display of neo-soul excellence took place on Saturday (May 9th), and the Instagram live stream garnered the most viewers on a “Verzuz” battle ever with nearly 750,000. Although many agreed that the “battle” felt more like a mutual celebration of each other’s talent and vast catalogues, it did mark the first female face-off of the “Verzuz” series, and it looks like the people showed their appreciation for finally including some ladies by tuning in in vast numbers. At one point, the two artists garnered nearly 750K, reaching just shy of it with 749K. Regardless, this number blows the previous record of roughly 500K set by Teddy Riley and Babyface last month out of the water.

To prepare for what would become a record-breaking battle, the two Grammy-winners launched a joint line of “Verzuz”-themed merch, which includes hoodies and graphic tees in black, white, gold, and orange colourways. The collection can be found on both Erykah and Jill’s websites here and here.

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The event was also done in partnership with Live Nation’s Femme It Forward series that celebrates women in entertainment. Watch the full battle below:

Nelly and Ludacris will be bringing that Southern hospitality to the “Verzuz” stage next weekend, according to the series creators, Timbaland and Swizz Beatz. Following Erykah Badu and Jill Scott’s incredible battle on Saturday (May 9th), the two legendary producers and masterminds behind “Verzuz” went live on Instagram together to discuss the first female face-off of the series, as well as give us a little something to look forward to. 

“Nelly want the smoke with Ludacris,” Swizz declares. “Can we go ‘down down baby’ next week?” Timbo responds, “Yeah, we’ll put our Air Force 1s on?” before the two of them proceed to pump up their viewers, asking over and over if we can make that happen. “Can we get that, Ludacris vs. Nelly?” Swizz asks. “Can we get that next Saturday, Timbaland?” 

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“Yes, we can get it. We got that,” Timbo ensures him. “Will the stadiums be full?” Swizz teases. “Full to the brim!” he sings. “Full to the briiiiiim!” Swizz then makes the most official announcement of the exchange, stating, “Ludacris vs. Nelly. Next Saturday. It’s not a f*cking game.”

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Although Nelly and Ludacris are certainly a good match for a battle, considering they were two of the most prominent Southern rappers of the late 90s/early 2000s, Luda was previously considered as a potential opponent by 50 Cent. However, it looks like he’ll be squaring off with Nelly next Saturday (May 16th) instead, and it’s sure to be one hell of a battle.

Who do you have your money on for the Luda vs. Nelly hit battle?

Although Brandy may be “open” to a “Verzuz” battle against Monica, she’s still not thrilled about the idea of going hit-for-hit. Timbaland and Swizz Beatz‘s “Verzuz” series has been a hallmark of quarantine entertainment thus far, providing music fans with tons of joy and comfort while they’re stuck at home. It was recently announced that Jill Scott and Erykah Badu would be the first set of female participants to go head-to-head a “Verzuz” battle, but two other ladies that have been brought up frequently as worthy potential opponents are R&B It girls, Brandy and Monica. The two songstresses rose to prominence around the same time in the 90s and early 2000s, and while there were rumours of their animosity towards one another ever since they recorded their breakout hit, “The Boy Is Mine,” they seem to be on good terms these days.

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On Friday (May 1st), Brandy sat down for a a virtual interview with Essence over Facebook to discuss her brand new single, “Baby Mama,” with Chance The Rapper. During the video chat, she was asked if she’d be interested in participating in a “Verzuz” battle in general (12:35), but she didn’t seem too certain about it.

“I really can’t see myself doing that,” Brandy confessed. “I mean, I’m open to it, but I haven’t really thought about it.” She then notes that the interviewer is “the second person that’s mentioned that to me,” before calling the prospect of a hit battle, “nerve-racking.” The obvious opponent of Monica is then suggested, to which she says, “Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t know.” However, she goes on to say, “I’m open. I’m open for sure. I’m open. I’m not closed-minded.”

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Monica, however, was much less willing to consider participating in a battle with Brandy, saying that she “doubts” it would ever happen. Although she thinks the concept of “Verzuz” is “an incredible idea” and appreciates the fact that it’s turned into “a celebration” of artists’ vast catalogues, she’s not jumping at the prospect of doing a face-off with Brandy, since the two of them have been pitted against each other their whole careers. “The reality is, people have put us against each other for 20-something years,” Monica said, despite the fact that, as she puts it, they’re “polar opposites.” However, she’d be interested in a more celebratory type of affair, rather than one of a competitive nature.

Babyface and Teddy Riley's "Verzuz" battle Instagram live on Monday (April 20th) managed to turn into a big success after several delays, and even led both artists to experiencing a major surge in streams afterward. The legendary producers finally had the chance to face-off over IG live on Monday after multiple postponements had begun putting a damper on the whole affair. It was all worth the trouble, though, especially considering how much traffic the battle brought to both Babyface and Teddy's streaming numbers.

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According to Nielsen Music/MRC Data reports, all 49 tracks used in the battle combined garnered 3 million on-demand audio streams in the U.S. the day after the live event took place (April 21st). This is a massive increase from day prior, which only recorded 1.4 million cumulative streams, meaning Face and Teddy's collective numbers saw a 115% surge within the span of one day.

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The battle track that garnered the most streams on the 21st was the Babyface-produced "Can We Talk" by Tevin Campbell, with 232,000 on-demand audio streams, a 110% increase from the 110,000 streams the day before. During the battle, Tevin tweeted that "'Can We Talk' is a song about stalking but it works every time," which may have had something to do with the increased interest in streaming the song.

These Instagram Live Battles have everyone desiring a chance to show off their catalog. Sure, any two artists can decide to go head-to-head at any time to please their fans, but because Swizz Beatz and Timbaland have created Verzuz, many artists want their stamps of approval. We've watched friendly battles between Scott Storch and Mannie Fresh, T-Pain and Lil Jon, RZA and DJ Premier, The-Dream and Sean Garrett... and now Ray J wants his turn.

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While Teddy Riley—who just faced off against Babyface in a battle between legends—was livestreaming, Ray J was spotted in the comments letting it be known that he's ready. "Yo @timbaland I'm next up!! Who want the smoke?" The innocent request quickly circulated on social media, and since then, people have been weighing in with their opinions. Let's just say, not everyone has been kind. 

"Ray J wants to do an IG live battle, and I say let 'em. He can play 'Wait A Minute' and clear the place out," one Twitter user wrote. Another added, "Not everybody that’s in the music scene deserve a battle. Im not trying to see a Ray J, Romeo, Bow Wow, Lil Salt Shaker, mixed paprika smoke or emcee basura go beat for beat or bar for bar. Let’s cut the bulls**t people. ???‍♂️."

Supporters of the singer-reality star pointed out his discography including tracks like "Wait a Minute" with Lil Kim, "Another Day in Paradise" with his sister Brandy, "Sexy Can I" featuring Young Berg also known as Hitmaka, "Famous" with Chris Brown, and "Tie Me Down" with the New Boyz. Some have suggested Ray J battle against artists like Fabolous or Chris Brown, but not everyone was on board. If Ray J did participate in a Verzuz battle, who do you think he should go up against?

Havoc has plenty of faith in his catalogue of hits, as he told Swizz Beatz he wouldn't be afraid of whichever producer they put him up against since nobody would be able to "destroy" him in a battle. The Mobb Deep rapper and producer reached out to Swizz in order to get involved with his and Timbaland's insanely popular Verzuz series, which has been keeping tons of people entertained during quarantine. The series, which has seen tons of legendary producers, songwriters, and rappers face off in a battle of their greatest hits, has been a source of joy for many hip hop and R&B fans during these dark times, and Havoc wants to get in on the action.

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“I just hit up Swizz, I sent him my list,” he revealed. “Now I said, ‘Swizz, I’ll battle anybody you put me against.’ He said, ‘I bet.’ I said, ‘I’ll be waiting,’ and he said, ‘I’m going to do it ASAP.’ So look for that.” He went on to explain why he's not afraid to take on any producer that's thrown his way, whether it be his longtime collaborator, Alchemist, previous Verzuz champion, RZA, or a newcomer like Metro Boomin.

“You could put me up against anybody and I’m not going to get destroyed," he explained. "I believe that in my heart. I could definitely hang in there with the best of them. And yeah, I was going to say [RZA] but I didn’t want to get beside myself, but I would take him on. I’m willing to lose just because.” Swizz seemingly implied that Havoc was already on the roster for a future battle with one of the aforementioned beatmakers during an Instagram live session on Saturday (April 18th) with Timbo. Swizz responded to Alchemist's lighthearted jab about Swizz in the comments by telling him, "you just focus on Havoc."

Toni Braxton was on the same page as most viewers who tuned in to watch Babyface and Teddy Riley attempt to go head to head on Saturday, and her whole befuddled journey has been immortalized in a series of live tweets. After their initial Verzuz battle was postponed due to Babyface's unfortunate diagnosis with coronavirus (from which he has now recovered), the legendary producers surprised fans by announcing that they'd finally be going up against one another on Saturday night.

Unfortunately, a myriad of issues caused the live streamed event to turn into an even greater disappointment than the prior cancellation. Teddy Riley showed up with a full entourage complete with a live band, camera crew, and a backup dancer. To top it all off, his sound was absolutely terrible, which ultimately led to the battle having to be postponed yet again. Practically everyone was appalled at how drastically this battle went up in smoke, and that even included Babyface's work wife, Toni Braxton.

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When the night began, Toni was stoked to observe what should have been history going down between her "musical husband" and Mr. Riley, retweeting Babyface's announcement of the battle and adding, "Oh wow this is gonna be lit."

RZA and DJ Premier were the latest hitmakers to go up against each other over Instagram live for Timbaland and Swizz Beatz's "Verzuz" series. The legendary producers went head-head-head on Saturday night in an epic battle for the ages, continuing to keep fans entertained in quarantine. They started off the session by taking a trip down memory lane and recounting how they first met in 1990. Although the Wu Tang leader was experiencing some sound issues near the beginning, he eventually resolved them and proceeded to drop some more vintage heat.

Preemo kicked things off with Jay-Z's "A Million and One Questions/Rhyme No More," prompting RZA to fire off GZA's "Liquid Swords." Premier decided to go with M.O.P.'s "Breakin' the Rules" for round two, to which RZA responded with Method Man's "Bring the Pain." Premier played Mos Def's "Mathematics" for the next round, which was met with RZA's pick, Cappadonna's "Maria."

The beat-makers started to up the ante by round four, with Premier bringing Big L's "The Enemy" into the mix. RZA then fired back with Raekwon's "Wu Gambinos." We got KRS One's "MC's Act Like They Don't Know" from Preemo for round five, followed by Ghostface and Jadakiss' "Run" from RZA. The battle went on for another 25 rounds, with RZA playing a snippet of an unreleased Joey Badass track near the end.

Mannie Fresh is coming to his own defence regarding his recent beat battle against fellow producer, Scott Storch, over Instagram live last week, claiming that the rules weren’t clear enough and that, ultimately, he was the real winner. After Mannie and Scott went head-to-head last Wednesday night in a battle of the beat-makers, Scott was somewhat unanimously declared the champion. However, many pointed out that, despite boasting an expansive catalogue of hits, Mannie excluded tons of his best work. The producer has since explained his reasoning for leaving out some of his strongest contenders, noting that he was under the impression that the battle was purely hip-hop.

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“I mean if it’s hip-hop, it’s gotta be hip-hop,” he told the hosts of The Breakfast Club. “I was told that it was a hip-hop beat battle. I didn’t know it was an R&B beat battle.” He admits that he definitely could have “went harder” with his choices; however, he ultimately disagreed with his pick, “Back That Azz Up” by Juvenile, resulting in a draw with Scott’s pick, “Still D.R.E.” by Dr. Dre, in the final round. While he has no regrets about participating in the battle, since it exposed a new generation to how many hits were actually made by the same producers, he does believe that he was the true winner.

“Some of these songs [he] didn’t do,” Mannie pointed out, referring to how some of the tracks Scott chose were only co-produced by him rather than entirely his own production. “I stuck to the rules. These are songs that Mannie Fresh produced.” Although he felt that the rules of the battle, which was organized by recent battle opponents, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland, were unclear, Mannie refrains from speaking negatively about Scott himself. “They gotta do a better job at putting this together,” he said.

Catch the full Breakfast Club interview below and let us know whether you agree with Mannie.