Just like the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Verzuz pretty much has its own cinematic universe (VCU) at this point. Speaking of, would the Earth Wind & Fire Verzuz The Isley Brothers event be the equivalent of The Avengers?
Anyway, Verzuz co-founders Swizz Beatz and Timbaland announced on Tuesday that they will perform a special “rematch” Verzuz event for Memorial Day weekend, also known as the unofficial start of summer.
Back in March, the official Verzuz social media team formed like Voltron and teased a whole upcoming line-up, equipped with a flyer. We knew that there will be a special “Rematch” Verzuz to celebrate Memorial Day at the time, but we didn’t know who the acts would be. Now we know!
This past March—the 24th to be exact—was also the one-year anniversary of the time Swizz and Timbaland hopped on IG Live and began the virtual version of Verzuz we know and enjoy today.
So while it would’ve been a fun clusterfuck to see a rematch of Teddy Riley Verzuz Babyface, it looks like Verzuz is paying homage to its origins.
In other (way less fun and very sobering) news, Soulja Boy announced on Saturday that he and Bow Wow would be performing in an upcoming Verzuz.
Bow Wow also amped up the supposed upcoming event via his Instagram page.
“Soulja Boy vs Bow wow #verzuz it’s official,” he tweeted. Here’s the thing we can’t ignore, though—Soulja is currently facing several sexual abuse, sexual battery, domestic abuse and assault allegations, some of which were filed as recently as earlier this month. Immediately, I had a nauseating feeling of deja vu in connection with the time Xscape Verzuz SWV was announced, which happened amid very serious sexual abuse allegations against one of Xscape’s members, Tiny “Tameka” Harris and her husband Clifford “T.I.” Harris Jr. There’s a gross pattern brewing here that I hope doesn’t continue...
However, Verzuz has yet to confirm the Soulja Boy / Bow Wow news on their official page. It looks like they’re either waiting until the Memorial Weekend event comes and goes to announce it or perhaps some deliberations are going down in the background (as I’m hoping they’re taking these valid concerns into account this time). Either way, we’ll keep our eyes and ears peeled—and we have reached out to Verzuz’s parent company Triller for a comment regarding Soulja Boy’s announcement tweet.
Swizz Beatz Verzuz Timbaland will take place live from Miami on Sunday, May 30 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. Y’all know the routine—you can watch live via the official Verzuz Instagram Page or via the Triller app.