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Teddy Riley & Babyface’s ‘Verzuz’ Battle Breaks The Internet With Over 3 Million Total Viewers

By: Yohance Kyles (@HUEYmixwitRILEY)Category: News

Instagram crashed while #TeddyRileyVsBabyface was the top trending topic on Twitter.

(AllHipHop News) It was advertised as a live battle, but the Verzuz faceoff between Teddy Riley and Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds felt more like a TED Talk about timeless R&B records. The two songwriting/producing icons went back-and-forth playing some of the biggest hits of all time.

After postponing the original date of the Instagram Live show because of Babyface falling ill, the second attempt on April 18 ended early due to technical problems. The third effort on Monday night still had some sound and video issues, but Riley/Babyface II was a historic event, musically and socially.

According to Verzuz co-organizer Swizz Beatz, #TeddyRileyVsBabyface drew in more than 3 million total people to the IG stream throughout the night. Over 510,000 concurrent viewers were watching at one point which is reportedly a new record for Instagram Live. Countless celebrities were also seen commenting during the showcase. 

There were so many fans interested in watching the matchup of legends that Instagram apparently started experiencing glitches. The social media company’s verified public relations account on Twitter even had to address the concerns with the application.

“We love how much you’re all enjoying the #TeddyRileyvBabyface Live on Instagram! We’re experiencing some technical difficulties on mobile apps but we’re working on it. In the meantime, live is available on desktop!” tweeted @InstagramComms at 9:21 pm ET.

Both Edmonds and Riley pulled from their respective deep catalog of classics. Tracks by Michael Jackson, Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson, Guy, Keith Sweat, Bobby Brown, Toni Braxton, Tevin Campbell, TLC, Boyz II Men, SWV, Jay-Z and other celebrated acts made the setlist. Following the battle, Tidal and Spotify compiled all the songs into streamable playlists.