This Sunday (April 4), Easter Sunday to be exact, the Isley Brothers will be taking the Verzuz stage alongside Earth, Wind and Fire. In a surprising twist, this particular competition will have a host, and his name is Steve Harvey.
On Tuesday (March 30), Verzuz made the official announcement on social media. “Breaking News,” read the post on Instagram and Twitter. “@IAmSteveHarvey will be hosting #VERZUZ, this Sunday with The Isley Brothers and Earth, Wind & Fire!” The post was also shared by Swizz Beatz, Timbaland, and Earth, Wind and Fire.
The forthcoming battle was announced less than two weeks ago in the wake of the epic Ghostface Killah and Raekwon Verzuz. It’s the second competition to go down since the Verzuz platform was acquired by Triller.
The partnership gave equity to Swizz, Tim and past contenders, and made the megaproducers brand visionaries in Triller’s Verzuz management team as well as “larger shareholders” of the larger Triller network.
“We’re just getting started. We have so much more to do,” Swizz said about the future of Verzuz. Considering the announcements that have been made since, it seems his statement rings true.
Next month, Method Man and Redman will take the stage for a 4/20 event. Then on Monday, May 8, SWV and Xscape will face off in a special Mother’s Day edition.
“Everybody’s been asking about it. We were ready,” LaTocha Scott explained. “We’re never [backing] down from a battle. It’s great for the culture.”
“At first, we were thinking of doing a girl group vs. a guy group, like Jodeci. But SWV just stood out,” she continued. “People love their vocals, and they love ours, too.”
There’s also a Ladies Night edition in the works and a rematch coming up in the near future.
The Isley Brothers and Earth, Wind and Fire Verzuz will go down on Sunday (April 4) at 8PM ET/5 PM PT on Instagram and the Triller app. With Steve Harvey as the host, expect to hear some jokes alongside the groups’ biggest hits.