While their Verzuz was delayed for more than a month, Ashanti and Keyshia Cole’s battle still saw a large audience for their matchup this past Thursday. In fact, the pair broke an Instagram Live record for most viewers watching a livestream. The news was shared by Verzuz on Saturday night as the platform revealed more than 8.1 million viewers tuned in to watch the battle across their Apple Music and Instagram livestreams.
Of that number, more than 6 million people tuned in on Instagram, surpassing the previous record of 5.5 million that they set for November’s Jeezy and Gucci Mane matchup. That battle still holds the Verzuz record for most overall viewers with more than 9.1 million viewers.
More than 8.1 MILLION viewers tuned in across Instagram, Apple Music, and other streams to watch @Ashanti and @KeyshiaCole
Let’s look at the stats (THREAD) pic.twitter.com/MeW9UdptSB
— Verzuz (@verzuzonline) January 24, 2021
There were plenty of memorable moments that surrounded Ashanti and Keyshia Cole’s battle. O.T. Genasis making a surprise appearance to sing “Love” beside Cole and 21 Savage letting his Verzuz vocals fly from the comfort of his home, which seemed to impress Missy Elliott, are just a couple that stood out.
As for the show’s future, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland revealed that their “holy grail” Verzuz would be Tupac vs. Notorious B.I.G. and Michael Jackson vs. Prince, a set of battles they both hope to execute in the best way possible.
You can check out the stats from Ashanti and Keyshia Cole’s battle above.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.