With the first-ever female Verzuz battle between Erykah Badu and Jill Scott happening this weekend, a few other talented women’s names are being tossed around for potential battles in the future. Fans are clamoring for a possible matchup of R&B superstars and longtime rivals, Brandy and Monica.
Last week, Brandy’s brother Ray J told Wendy Williams during a recent video chat interview that while he doesn’t have the hits to make a worthwhile Verzuz appearance (we’re glad he’s self-aware), he did say that his big sis Ms. Norwood would absolutely slay, adding that he’d love to see her go toe-to-toe with her “The Boy Is Mine” collaborator.
When asked by the Atlanta radio station V-103 if she would participate in a Verzuz battle, Monica said that she doesn’t think so. However, she said she’d sing with Brandy for the popular Instagram Live series if it’s more like Teddy Riley and Babyface’s battle, which she believes was more of a “celebration.”
“I understand the idea of [Verzuz] and I think it’s really, really entertaining and an incredible idea,” she said. “What I do like is it’s kind of turning into a celebration. I can handle a celebration. I think battles...One thing that has happened to me my whole career is being put against someone else that I’m not even remotely similar to. I think the reality is, us being polar opposites makes it dope.”
“The only battle or Verzuz they want to see with me is me against Brandy, and the reality is, people have put us against each other for twenty-something years,” she continues, adding that she believes Brandy is “one of the greatest artists of our time,” and she’d rather celebrate both of their music.
“That would be the only thing that makes sense to me,” she adds, “because I’ve been trying to tell people for about 25 years, you can like both! You’re going to turn this into 1998 all over again and I have no interest in that.”
In an interview with Essence on Friday (May 1), Brandy said that she’s “not closed-minded” to the idea of a Monica Verzuz match-up, but she’s still rather hesitant.
If we can keep this Verzuz clean, I think it would be excellent to see these two incredible talents celebrating each other’s music.