One of the few bright spots during the COVID-19 pandemic has been watching the rise of Verzuz, the series of battles that started on March 24 when Swizz Beatz and Timbaland had an impromptu beat contest on Instagram Live.
Since then, the superproducers have been hard at work pitting more producers and songwriters against each other in matchups that have delighted thousands of fans.
So far, we’ve seen showdowns like Hit-Boy vs Boi-1da, Sean Garrett vs. The-Dream, Johntá Austin vs. Ne-Yo, Scott Storch vs Mannie Fresh, and most recently Lil Jon vs T-Pain—with a DJ Premier vs RZA matchup on the way this weekend.
Swizz said that his idea for the series harkens back to beat battles he had with Kanye West in 2008 and Timbaland in 2018 at Hot 97’s