The battle finally went down, but some felt KC’s energy was giving that she was ready to just “let it go.”
Well, R&B fans got their life as the Verzuz battle between Keyshia Cole and Ashanti finally went down on Thursday, January 21, and clearly they were happy to make us wait for it. The R&B songstresses were initially scheduled to go toe-to-toe on December 12, but had to cancel at the last minute due to the fact that Ashanti tested positive for COVID-19 hours before the event. After another postponement in early January, last night the ladies were finally able to go hit for hit. Appropriately mimicking Verzuz battles from the early days of quarantine, Cole and Ashanti were not in the same room but videoing in from separate locations seated upon literal thrones.
Even though fans had to wait six extra weeks for this battle to go down, it looked like Keyshia Cole was not in a hurry to arrive, as she showed up over an hour late for the event, leaving Ashanti to sit alone on her throne, listen to the DJ, and attempt to do some light crowd work while she tried to get Keyshia on the phone. The late start got the proceedings off to somewhat a rocky start, with fans noticing that Cole seemed somewhat agitated from the top. On top of that, some major sound issues at the beginning got everything off on somewhat of the wrong foot, but as per usual, the power of the music and the songs ultimately shined through.
However, of course the internet wasn’t willing to let Keyshia’s late arrival and initial demeanor off that easy. Some fans suggested a man such as her ex-boyfriend Niko Khale must have pissed her off, which even prompted the youngin’ to reply, “it wasn’t me.” Others even through her rocky relationship with her mother Frankie in the mix, with one user commenting “lord, Frankie then pissed Keyshia off again.” Well, Keyshia’s DJ for the event DJ Hi-C called into Houston’a 97.9 The Box this morning and cleared up exactly who or what it was that disturbed KC’s energy…and it was actually the Verzuz team.
Hi-C clarified that Keyshia was actually on time for the event but did not want to come on screen due to her side being noticeably more blurry than Ashanti’s as well as sound issues where they couldn’t hear audio from Ashanti’s side. Take a listen to what he had to say along with some of the reactions below. What are your thoughts? Did you enjoy the battle?
Lol it wasn’t me 🤷🏾♂️ https://t.co/o4otgDPGWe
— Niko Khalé (@NikoKhale) January 22, 2021
Keyshia Cole late and she got an attitude? Girl we the ones that’s suppose to be madddd. pic.twitter.com/seMOCAQPdP
— Evelyn (@Exelyn95) January 22, 2021
So Keyshia Cole showed up hella late with an attitude AND sounds like she's talking/singing underwater? #Verzuz #verzuzbattle pic.twitter.com/F6nzRDMfgR
— Jane 🌻🌹 (@A_maan_duuh) January 22, 2021
I’m crying someone said “Dat wasnt Keyshia Cole tonight. Dat was Lil Frankie” 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
— Khails🤍 (@Mikhailkalitaaa) January 22, 2021
After having an attitude, being rushy and off the liquor during the whole night, taking constant breaks and not playing many of her most important hits.
This is the moment Keyshia Cole knew she lost the battle and the most important round… #20.#Verzuz #AshantiVsKeyshiaCole pic.twitter.com/uG3AZWTs5G— Truthfully ‘THE EXCEPTIONAL’ Ruthless (@FullyCalibrated) January 22, 2021
@KeyshiaCole I'm still a huge fan but last night was weird. From your attitude to being almost 2 hours late with no apology or anything. This event was rescheduled twice so I thought it would've been perfect.
— Bryson (@__Pebo) January 22, 2021
Keyshia Cole walked in like we bothering her or something lol. You was late beloved we been here.
— Zachary Mitchell (@zmitchell24) January 22, 2021
Keyshia Cole walked in late and making demands 😂 #Verzuz pic.twitter.com/5zPwKTwSq7
— Ave Guapo (@AveGuapo4x) January 22, 2021