Verzuz co-founders Swizz Beatz and Timbaland connected for the first rematch of their battle series on Sunday (May 30). The heavyweight bout also served as the first installment of Verzuz Live, with the action going down in-person at Miami’s renowned club LIV to add some entertainment to residents’ Memorial Day pre-game.
Swizz and Timbo previously held a beat battle at Hot 97’s Summer Jam festival in 2018, and then kicked off Verzuz at the onset of quarantine when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020. The anticipated rematch gave the Virginia beat maestro a chance to exact revenge after taking the consensus loss last year.
Both Verzuz co-founders took the stage on time shortly after 8 p.m. ET. Swizz Beatz came through with a dapper white suit while Timbaland opted for the silky matching shorts and gold short sleeve shirt, looking like he was ready for a tropical vacation.
More than 165,000 viewers virtually filed in to watch the action on VerzuzTV’s Instagram Live, while the stars were out in Miami supporting their hip-hop compatriots. DaBaby, Nas, Rick Ross, Fabolous, Busta Rhymes and more were on hand to show love for the battle dedicated to the late DMX, who passed away in April.
“I dedicate this show to my brother DMX, and Timbaland’s sister Aaliyah,” Swizz stated.
After two hours of heating up the nightclub’s center stage, Timbo and Swizz came together to celebrate the platform they built together from the ground up in just a year. Swizz gifted his Verzuz co-founder with a custom airbrushed jacket featuring portraits of his frequent collaborators Aaliyah and Missy Elliott, before riding off to DMX playing in the background.
“I miss my brother, I ain’t gonna lie,” Swizz added. “That s–t almost took me out. Timb was such a gentleman, he was like, ‘We gonna end it on DMX.’”
After 20 rounds in the ring, check out Billboard’s scorecard to see which production icon we have leaving LIV as the winner.
Round 1: Timbaland’s “Drop” vs. Angie Stone’s “Wish I Didn’t Miss You” (Swizz Beatz)
“We been in the matrix so long, we don’t even know how to be outside anymore,” Swizz stated while instructing fans to live in the moment and stay off their phones during the battle. Round one serves as a warmup, with both acts easing into the rematch with a “yeah, I produced this too” reminder.
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Round 2: Missy Elliott’s “Work It” (Timbaland) vs. Nicki Minaj’s “Roman’s Revenge” (Swizz Beatz)
After leaving doubt of his victory in their previous matchup, Timbo comes out swinging in round two with a nuclear missile in the form of his and Missy Elliott’s 2002 smash “Work It.” With the lethal combination, Swizz knows there isn’t much he can do. “That was cute,” he jokes. “Roman’s Revenge” is a worthy competitor though, let it be known.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 3: Jay-Z’s “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” (Timbaland) vs. Jay-Z’s “Anything” (Swizz Beatz)
The start of a recurring crowd-pleasing theme: play whatever’s in the tank from The Carters. Timbaland digs into his Jay-Z crate and comes out with The Black Album’s thumping “Dirt Off Your Shoulder,” which had us collectively giving the same look and head nod Hov gave him in the well-documented studio clip.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 4: JAY-Z’s “Big Pimpin” (Timbaland) vs. DMX’s “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem” (Swizz Beatz)
Swizz couldn’t let the run keep going and stops the bleeding here with DMX’s “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem” to get back in the crowd’s good graces. With Swizz being there for DMX at every step of his career, it’s only right they linked up for the It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot standout and the stadium anthem holds up over two decades later.
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Round 5: Aaliyah’s “Try Again” (Timbaland) vs. Ruff Ryders feat. Snoop Dogg, Scarface, Jadakiss & Yung Wun’s “WW II”
Timbaland switches gears and pays homage to his “sister” Aaliyah, who will be gone 20 years in August. Swizz pays his respects and lets Timbo have the stage as he admits defeat whenever an Aaliyah record gets played on Sunday night. “I’m not gonna lie, that’s one of my favorite records,” Swizz says. “I’m just gonna step to the side.”
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 6: Memphis Bleek feat. JAY-Z, Missy Elliott & Twistas “Is That Your Chick” (Timbaland) vs. Ruff Ryders feat. Drag-On & Juvenile “Down Bottom” (Swizz Beatz)
A Memphis Bleek appearance! Play the lottery if you have that one on your bingo card tonight. Bleek can thank loaded assists from the superstar duo of JAY-Z and Missy Elliott for his last appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Is That Your Chick” in Sept. 2000.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 7: Jay-Z feat. Amil & Big Jaz’s “Jigga What Jigga Who” vs. Kanye West feat. Rick Ross’ “Famous (Remix)” (Swizz Beatz)
It’s time for Swizz to respond and he comes up with a victory. The Bronx native adds some sauce onto Kanye West’s “Famous” by shocking viewers with the unreleased Rick Ross remix, which surfaced online just days after the 2016 album dropped. The element of surprise plays well here.
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Round 8: Beyoncé feat. Jay-Z’s “Drunk In Love” (Timbaland) vs. Beyoncé feat. Jay-Z’s “Upgrade U” (Swizz Beatz)
“He’s sweating. I thought Timb was gonna slide down the pole,” Swizz jokes, regarding his opponent’s perspiration issues in the Miami heat. By round eight, Timbo is sweating profusely — but he doesn’t have a worry in the world on that stage with “Drunk In Love” in his repertoire. Bey’s intoxicating vocals made the No. 2-peaking Hot 100 hit inescapable at the start of 2014.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 9: Beyoncé’s “Partition” (Timbaland) vs. Beyoncé’s “Get Me Bodied” (Swizz Beatz)
The Beyoncé party continues into round nine, and the crowd appreciates that. Swizzy ends up going 0-2 in the Bey department, with Timbaland’s BeyHive linkups proving to be too much: “Partition” finds Beyoncé putting her rapping chops on display with a fantasy love story over Timbo’s jumping 808s and distorted production.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 10: Jay-Z’s “Tom Ford” (Timbaland) vs. Swizz Beatz’s “It’s Me B–ches”
It’s almost halftime, and Swizz has to tuck his shirt in for this one. Major respect to the Ruff Ryder for playing one of his own records featuring him rapping as well. The remix calls on Lil Wayne in his prime and Swizzy lets it run, but makes sure to cut the track off before R. Kelly’s verse comes around.
WINNER: Tie
Round 11: Nelly Furtado’s “Promiscuous” (Timbaland) vs. T.I.’s “Bring ‘Em Out” (Swizz Beatz)
One of the best rounds of the night to kick off the second half. Neither Timbo or Swizz came to play around here. Timbaland takes everyone back to 2006 when he threw an alley oop to Nelly Furtado for her first No. 1 hit with “Promiscuous.” Swizz ordering up a T.I. connection also got a frisky pop from the crowd and he let Timbo know he wasn’t playing around this time.
“What have I been doing for a long time? No friendly fire, I’m here for war tonight,” he warns. Swizz is talking war but we’re calling it a truce for now.
WINNER: Tie
Round 12: Ludacris’ “The Potion” (Timbaland) vs. Cassidy’s “I’m a Hustla” (Swizz Beatz)
“You better not play any of those records tonight,” Swizz continues to chirp. “I’m a hustla, I could crush Timothy like a bug.” This was an easy win for Swizz, like a one versus eight seed in the NBA playoffs. “I’m a Hustla” ended up being remixed by just about everyone, and Beyoncé even incorporated the track into her 2018 Beychella performance.
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Round 13: Ginuwine’s “Pony” (Timbaland) vs. Kanye West feat. Chance the Rapper’s “Ultralight Beam” (Swizz Beatz)
Way back in 1996, Timbaland proved his worth producing the silky “Pony” for Ginuwine and began to make a name for himself in the R&B lane alongside his Swing Mob crew members. Swizz Beatz fumbles with his response when electing to go with the gospel-themed Life of Pablo opener, which caught the rarely upbeat crowd off-guard.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 14: Aaliyah’s “One in a Million” (Timbaland) vs. Ruff Ryders “What Ya Want” Feat. Eve & Nokio (Swizz Beatz)
Timb’s shirt is being held together by only one button at this point, and the look on his face shows it’s getting hot in herre. While powering through the rising temperatures, Timbaland earns another victory after asking fans to put their ones in the sky in honor of Baby Girl.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 15: The LOX feat. Drag-On & Eve’s “Ryde or Die, B–ch” (Timbaland) vs. Noreaga feat. Big Pun, Nature, Cam’Ron, Jadakiss & Styles P’s “Banned From T.V.” (Swizz Beatz)
Even on someone’s worst day, the inspiring “Banned From T.V.” could get them in the right state of mind to attack whatever roadblocks remain ahead. Swizzy sets the stage for a few of NYC’s finest emcees to grace the mic alongside Noreaga and let the culture know ’98 was New York’s year, even without an appearance by DMX or JAY-Z.
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Round 16: Jay-Z feat. Rick Ross ‘s “F*ckwitmeyouknowigotit” (Timbaland) vs. Jay-Z’s “On to the Next One” (Swizz Beatz)
By this point, Timbaland is dancing all over the stage. He even gives DaBaby a shoutout in the building, and deems that MC’s Billion Dollar Baby Entertainment crew to the “hardest thing out” in rap right now. Swizzy takes the momentum back and hits Timbo with a playful switch on his lyrics, “Freeze — somebody get Timb some towels please!”
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Round 17: Jay-Z feat. Justin Timberlake’s “Holy Grail” (Timbaland) vs. Styles P’s “Good Times” (Swizz Beatz)
Styles P linked up with Swizzy to make a gangster’s stoner anthem. Even though Swizz Beatz doesn’t smoke, he easily stepped into Styles’ world and built a memorable beat around a pitched-up Freda Payne sample from the ’70s.
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Round 18: Missy Elliott’s “Get Ur Freak On” (Timbaland) vs. Swizz Beatz’s “Money in the Bank”
A landslide win for Timbo here. “Get Ur Freak On” is a prime example of the unstoppable Kobe and Shaq-like chemistry exuded by Timbaland and Missy Elliott in the early 2000s. The Virginia duo pushed the sonic boundaries of hip-hop with their unconventional approach to the art form. The timeless work holds up even two decades later.
WINNER: Timbaland
Round 19: Lil’ Kim feat. Mr. Cheeks’ “The Jump Off” (Timbaland) vs. Remy Ma’s “Whuteva” (Swizz Beatz)
Swizz now has his dress shirt off and is walking the stage with his cigar and a black tank top. They must’ve not known it was round 19 because these were puzzling set-ups for their final haymaker to close out the night. We’re calling a draw here.
WINNER: Tie
Round 20: LL Cool J’s “Headsprung” (Timbaland) vs. DMX’s “Party Up” (Swizz Beatz)
Swizz Beatz ends the 20th round with a lyrical knockout when showing love to Dark Man X with his “Party Up” anthem, which sent the crowd into a frenzy. The DMX homage was a fitting close to a night with so much musical greatness on display.
WINNER: Swizz Beatz
Bonus Rounds
Overtime: Timbaland
Timbo saved some major heat for overtime and it’s almost as if he didn’t realize the designated 20 rounds were up. The Virginia native finished off Swizz in the bonus rounds with a range of bangers that included Kanye West’s 2007 anthem “Stronger,” Aaliyah’s “Are You That Somebody” and his own “The Way I Are” with Keri Hilson. It should also be noted Swizz brought out a new J. Cole verse added to DMX, Nas, and JAY-Z’s “Bath Salts” off X’s Exodus album.
Wider Catalog: Timbaland
This was another tight category but it has to go to Timbaland. His rap hits can flood any arena banging from coast-to-coast, but he also has another pop and R&B bag much deeper than Swizz’s. His No. 1 hits with Nelly Furtado, Aaliyah and Justin Timberlake cannot be denied.
Biggest Snub: DMX’s “X Gon Give It To Ya” (Point: Timbaland)
This could’ve went to Timbaland, but he brought out the necessary weaponry in the bonus rounds. Following DMX’s passing, Swizz Beatz could’ve gone even further into reminding people of all the classics he crafted alongside the Yonkers legend. “X Gon Give It To Ya” is one of those Dark Man X records that turns the energy up in any room.
Best Banter: Swizz Beatz
Swizz kept hitting Timbaland with the witty jabs on the mic. As the night went on, Timbo’s back only got sweatier through his shirt. The Ruff Ryder’s production savant continued to poke fun at Timbaland’s expense, asking if he needed another towel or he just came out of the shower.
Biggest K.O.: Swizz Beatz
Round 20 couldn’t have been more one-sided to close out the Verzuz. It’s almost as if Timbo fell asleep at the wheel when he played LL Cool J’s “Headsprung,” while Swizzy closed out with an homage to his close friend DMX by having “Party Up” booming through the LIV speakers.
People’s Champ: Timbaland
While the crowd on tap was pretty weak for most of the night — it’s an early start for Miami — Timbaland definitely did his part to raise the energy on LIV’s dance floor. With a few glasses of wine mixed in, Timbo let loose and by the end of a night filled with Virginia-bred bangers. His silky dress shirt was held together by just one button and drenched in sweat, which won the people over.
FINAL SCORE: Timbaland, 13-10-3
