Timbaland and Swizz Beatz have inked a new deal with the Elon Musk owned X (formerly Twitter) to revive their popular music battle series, Verzuz.
The series which took its inspiration from Hip Hop and dancehall battle and clash cultures paused in 2022 following the settlement of a lawsuit against Triller, which had acquired Verzuz in 2021 but returned ownership to Timbaland and Swizz Beatz earlier this year. The deal with Thriller included ownership shares given to artists who were initially part of the online show, including Jamaican acts Beenie Man and Bounty Killer.
“We are thrilled to partner with X, the most innovative platform globally. Our goal has always been to bring Verzuz to the world which we can now do bigger than ever,” said Timbaland in a statement.
Swizz Beatz added: “We are beyond thrilled to have found the best partner for Verzuz. Not only are we excited to have Verzuz on X, we’re excited to help X build the biggest entertainment company in the world.”
The partnership aims to leverage the viral conversations that frequently occurred on X during past Verzuz battles. Previously, episodes streamed on Instagram Live and Apple Music, attracting millions of viewers, and were held at venues like New York’s Madison Square Garden. Despite this, much of the online discourse happened on X.
Through this new collaboration, Timbaland and Swizz Beatz will retain ownership and creative control of Verzuz, while X will have exclusive distribution rights. The platform is currently led by CEO Linda Yaccarino.
Verzuz has featured notable matchups such as The Lox vs Dipset, Brandy vs. Monica, Jeezy vs. Gucci Mane, Ashanti vs. Keyshia Cole, and Mario vs. Omarion. The next battle will be announced soon, according to a press release about the show’s return.
