Babyface and Teddy Riley’s Beat Battle was a Preventable Disaster

Music - 10 months ago

zo Zo is a staff writer at Okayplayer where he covers…

Source: Instagram

Plagued by technical difficulties, the r&b vets called their bout early, making for one of Twitter’s most memorable nights to date.

After two last-minute postponements, Teddy Riley and Babyface finally got to square up for their live VERZUZ battle on Instagram last night.

READ: Babyface Tests Positive for Coronavirus, Announces New Date for Beat Battle with Teddy Riley

But with no apparent soundcheck or troubleshooting contingency in place, technical difficulties got the best of the battle. Plagued by warbled and double-backed audio, the match was called within an hour of its shaky start, with Riley’s setup getting unmanageably glitchy. And just like that, the month-in-the-making duel collapsed on itself. It did, however, make for some supremely-entertaining Twitter banter, digging into the generational and technological frustrations of the modern r&b architects.

INTERVIEW: Teddy Riley on New Jack Origins, Discovering The Neptunes and Studying The Times

So instead of the highlights from a much-anticipated night of grown-folks-only r&b classics, all we have are the tweets. And, my god, are they glorious.

Comb through the reactions to Teddy Riley and Babyface’s abbreviated beat battle below. Here’s hoping the next round goes a little smoother (or, at the very least, has some technical support on hand.)

This is the expression your Dad makes the first time he uses Facetime…. pic.twitter.com/zFzf1VQWuT

— Dr. Jason Johnson (@DrJasonJohnson) April 19, 2020

The hype man doesn’t know how to fix audio? AND he doesn’t have a mask on either? Teddy! What is going on!?

— Toni Braxton (@tonibraxton) April 19, 2020

Yeah, y’all out of pocket… pic.twitter.com/IMOJjNxTN0

— Double L must Rock The Bells (@LoveThePuck) April 19, 2020

WHO GOT THUGGER'S NUMBER? PUT HIM ON THE PHONE W/ TEDDY IMMEDIATELY. pic.twitter.com/nNHVpXDPwO

— Dee Phunk (@DeePhunk) April 19, 2020

https://twitter.com/crissles/status/1251694233574150150?s=21

Babyface had time to beat COVID, do his skincare regimen, and learn how to work IG. What was Teddy doing? Coordinating fedoras.

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— #OluwatoyinSalau (@holadamilola) April 19, 2020

Teddy Riley while his audio suck and echoin pic.twitter.com/lbqA0lZXUd

— Italian Fiesta Spokesperson (@ChickenGeorge__) April 19, 2020

Teddy Riley pic.twitter.com/2fA21buomg

— ANTHONY ADAMS (@spiceadams) April 19, 2020