Fans of the virtual music battle series, Verzuz, can now expect to see the performances continue. Superproducers Timbaland and Swizz Beatz have successfully settled with the owners of the platform, Triller, after filing a lawsuit back in August.
Verzuz was established during the pandemic in March of 2020 and it is the brainchild of Timbaland and Swizz Beatz. It began as a friendly battle between the two producers and blossomed into a well-known award-winning series.
The platform has witnessed hit-for-hit battles with some of the biggest names in music including Chaka Khan, Anthony Hamilton, Omarion, The Lox, Fat Joe and a variety of others. Verzuz has even broken an Instagram record for live streaming by receiving over 6 Million views and it regularly averages 1 million viewers across all platforms, according to the platform’s website.
After building up the reputable brand, Timbaland and Swizz Beatz sold the company to TikTok’s competitor, Triller, with undisclosed terms last year. The duo sued Triller last month for $28 million, alleging that the company failed to make a significant payment outlined in their agreement.
The producers say that Triller was supposed to pay them a total of $18 million in March, followed by $1 million a month for the following 10 months, but claim the payments were missed.
Once hip-hop lovers and fellow music moguls were privy to the lawsuit, many people rallied behind Timbaland and Swizz Beats by threatening to boycott the brand. Voices such as Diddy and Jermaine Dupri – who were recently in talks about doing their own hit-for-hit concert – vowed to cancel Triller if the Verzuz co-creators were not properly compensated.
Swizz Beatz and Timbaland issued a joint statement noting that “Verzuz has always been a platform that is by the artists, for the artists and with the people.” And when reflecting on the settlement they stated, “we’re glad to come to an amicable agreement with Triller and continue giving fans the music and community that they’ve come to know and love from the brand.” Although specific terms of the recent settlement were not revealed, the settlement is expected to increase both producers’ ownership stake within the company.
