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Bow Wow and Soulja Boy in Verzuz Battle Presented by Triller




Written by: LaKisa Renee


The highly anticipated Bow Wow vs Soulja Boy Verzuz Battle presented by the Triller Network happened this past Saturday June 26th, 2021 during the Official BET Awards Weekend and it did not disappoint! The duo’s matchup is the latest pairing for Verzuz, a Swizz Beatz and Timbaland co-production that brings music legends together in a musical face-off.The duo took us down memory lane with many of their famous hits and dances. It felt like we were all brought back to our childhoods, the energy in the room was amazing! This was a battle that no one thought would happen. Previously, Bow Wow stated “I come from an era where...if you a legend, you a legend. No need to remind folks. I’m only 33, I got more work to do. A Verzuz for me right now makes no sense. He also stated that if he did a Verzuz it would be with the Rapper Fabulous, but he already did one. Verzuz Co-founder Timbaland commented back stating that “ He mite not have 20 n the bag”, meaning that Bow Wow doesn’t have enough hits for a Verzuz battle. This ignited a firestorm amongst the two, Bow Wow laughing and stating that he has way more than 20 hits. Fans began requesting a nostalgia battle between the two. They insisted that both are young legends who deserve respect and to be acknowledged for their groundbreaking accomplishments, success and impact on the music industry. This would be a perfect match up because the two come from the same era and have hits together. Bow Wow stated it’s “not gonna to happen.” Fast forward to June 26th, 2021, you have Bow Bow and Soulja Boy participating in one of the most exciting, hilarious Verzuz battle with over 700,000 fans viewing and many in attendance celebrating. They kept the crowd entertained with friendly jokes and playful insults towards each other, it was like watching at comedy show at times.



Video Highlights of Verzuz Battle

Both came out swinging in the first round. Soulja Boy started the night with his latest hit “She Make It Clap,” and Bow Wow started with a high energy performance of “Jumpin’ Jumpin’”, his hit song by Destiny Child featuring Jermaine Dupri and Da Brat. Bow Wow pulled out all of his hits and made sure to remind everyone of his versatility and longevity. He even included references from his character Calvin Cambridge from the movie “Like Mike” even performing the hit single “Basketball” from the soundtrack. He highlighted his collaborations with Three 6 Mafia, bringing out DJ Paul to perform the hit “Side 2 Side,” He also performed songs featuring Huey, Mike Jones and Birdman. Bow Wow sent the crowd into a frenzy when he brought out So So Def CEO Jermaine Dupri, So So Def legendary rapper Da Brat and Dem Franchize Boyz’s Pimpin’ for a performance of “I Think They Like Me (Remix)”. But one of the most exciting moments was when he brought out Omarion to sing their hit “Let Me Hold You” and performed the viral “piano fingers” dance. You can catch Bow Wow, Soulja Boy and Omarion this fall on the rescheduled Millenium Tour starting on October 10, 2021.

Soulja Boy did not disappoint either. He reminded the world that he is truly an innovator in YouTube stardom, rapping and music production. The artist not only performed his hits, but also played songs that he produced such as Nicki Minaj’s “Itty Bitty Kitty.” He also performed his hit songs “LOL :-)” featuring. Trey Songz & Gucci Mane, “Make It Clap” Remix with a live appearance from French Montana and the hit “We Made It’ with superstar Drake. But the K.O. of the night was when Soulja Boy performed his monster hit “Crack That”, the crowd went crazy! “Crank That” was the first song to debut at No.1 solely written, produced and performed alone by an artist. It also had the most digital downloads at the time of its release. It inspired a whole generation and the “Crank That” dance which was the first rap history to go viral. A legendary moment of the night was when Soulja Boy surprised the audience by bringing out Romeo Miller aka Lil’ Romeo to perform two of his childhood hits. Initially Romeo Miller wanted to battle Bow Wow in a Verzuz, so it was fitting for him to perform. This was the first time in 20 years that both Bow Wow and Romeo Miller shared the same stage. Romeo also saluted Bow Wow and Soulja Boy and thanked them for their contributions to the industry, for being trailblazers and innovators. They are truly legends. Below is the official round list of the Verzuz battle.



Bow Wow and Soulja Boy Round List:

Round 1: Soulja's "She Make It Clap" vs. Destiny’s Child feat. Bow Wow, Da Brat & Jermaine Dupri's "Jumpin, Jumpin (So So Def Remix)"

Round 2: Soulja's "Turn My Swag On" vs. Chris Brown's "Run It (Remix)"

Round 3: Soulja Boy feat. Sammie's "Kiss Me Thru the Phone" vs. Bow Wow feat. Xscape's "Bounce With Me"

Round 4: Soulja's "Pretty Boy Swag" vs. Bow Wow feat. R. Kelly's "I'm A Flirt"

Round 5: Soulja Boy feat. Nicki Minaj's "She Make It Clap (Remix)" vs. Bow Wow feat. Chris Brown & Johnta Austin's "Shortie Like Mine"

Round 6: Soulja Boy feat. French Montana's "She Make It Clap (Remix)" vs. Bow Wow feat. Snoop Dogg's "That's My Name"

Round 7: Soulja's "Yahhh!" vs. Bow Wow feat. Birdman's "Let's Get Down"

Round 8: Soulja's "I Got Me Some Bapes" vs. Bow Wow feat. Omarion's "Girlfriend"

Round 9: Soulja Boy feat. Shawty Lo & Gucci Mane's "Gucci Bandana" vs. Bow Wow's "Take Ya Home"

Round 10: Soulja's "Donk" vs. Huey feat. Bow Wow & T-Pain's "Pop, Lock & Drop It (Remix)"

Round 11: Nicki Minaj feat. Soulja Boy's "Yasss Bish" vs. Bow Wow's "Basketball"

Round 12: Roscoe Dash & Soulja Boy's "All the Way Turnt Up" vs. Jagged Edge feat. Bow Wow, Nelly & Jermaine Dupri's "Where the Party At (Remix)"

Round 13: Trey Songz feat. Soulja Boy & Gucci Mane's "LOL :)" vs. Bow Wow feat. T-Pain's "Outta My System"

Round 14: Soulja Boy's "Let Me Get Em" vs. Dem Franchize Boyz feat. Bow Wow, Jermaine Dupri & Da Brat's "I Think They Like Me (Remix)"

Round 15: Drake feat. Soulja Boy's "We Made It" vs. Three 6 Mafia feat. Bow Wow & Project Pat 's "Side to Side (Remix)"

Round 16: Lil Romeo's "2-Way" vs. Bow Wow feat. Mike Jones's "Fresh Az I'm Iz"

Round 17: Soulja Boy's "Crank Dat" vs. Bow Wow feat. Omarion's "Let Me Hold You"


The battle included some overtime bonus songs. Bow Wow performed his crowd favorite track “Like You” ft. Ciara, which Soulja Boy didn’t respond back to. They ended the night with a performance of their song together "Marco Polo.”

Before leaving the stage, both Bow Wow and Soulja Boy thanked each other and made sure to give each other their flowers. Bow Wow stating that Soulja deserves every inch of respect and Soulja Boy credited Bow Wow for inspiring him to change his life and take music seriously. Soulja Boy revealed to the crowd that he is releasing his new album “Big Draco” on July 28th, 2021. While Soulja Boy provided some quality entertainment, had great energy and performed some major hits, I’m going to have to declare Bow Wow the winner of the Verzuz battle. Between his energetic performances, rap delivery, versatility, longevity, movie references and celebrity features, Bow Wow brought his A game. Check out the pictures and video highlights from the Verzuz battle above. It was definitely a historical night!


For more information on Verzuz, visit: https://verzuztv.com/


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Photo/Video credit: LaKisa Renee

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