Ashanti vs. Keyshia Cole #Verzuz: The Outfits, Sponsors & Winner | Part Two

So the first part of this Verzuz write-up between Ashanti and Keyshia Cole concentrated on the poor presentation of the show. Part Two will look at everything else going on in the Doritos-sponsored event, while they went into battle. We'll start with the outfits. 

Keyshia has always been a busty woman. She clearly wanted 1.2 million people to look at her chest. It was impressive her boobs stayed put the entire time. Word of advice. If you have to keep touching your boobs and re-adjusting your top to ensure they don't fall out, consider wearing a different top that supports you better. 

They both looked nice. They both wore the exact same weave/lacefront with the side part. No one would have cared if they threw on a hoodie and sweatpants. 

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Most of us that watched only cared about the music. Not the clothes. Ashanti wasn't without her outfit issues either. Her coochie cutters were too tight around her genital area. She complained about it several times. Comfortable clothing should have been a priority if you're doing a two-hour show. If you have to mention your concerns about a nip slip, or your vagina being in distress to a million viewers, then I honestly don't know what to tell you! 

Keyshia should just have let the songs play, and NOT sing them. The vocals were off and that's an understatement! The surprise factor? OT Genesis (pictured) making a surprise appearance being all up in Keyshia's personal space (leading to speculation they might be screwing). Social distancing went completely out the window! 

They came together to sing 'Love,' the very song that caused their fall-out. The history? OT Genasis remade her hit single 'Love' in a video that went viral on YouTube, and she had the video removed. She wasn't happy, and he later insulted her and said she smelt like fish sticks. Moving on. The subtle J.Lo shade from Ashanti was delicious. We were all waiting for it. 

Ashanti recalls how she almost signed to Bad Boy when she was 13-years-old. Eventually getting her big break in the music industry as a songwriter, this resulted in the mega hit 'Ain’t It Funny' for Jennifer Lopez. Ashanti played 'Ain't It Funny,' reclaimed her vocals and gave J.Lo a shout-out. She pretty much said, "I’m gon' play this J.Lo record since it’s my vocals anyway!" Ashanti's pen game doesn't get nearly enough respect. 

The lack of story telling behind the songs was a disappointment. This is what makes a Verzuz interesting. It's why I enjoyed the Babyface and Teddy Riley presentation. Ashanti did make an effort and we somewhat got a history lesson on some stuff. But because they were so late, they were practically rushing through the songs (20 each) just so that they can push their new singles. 

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Time constraints is probably why we didn't get that luxury of storytelling. Seeing two people just sitting there playing their biggest hits can get tedious during a 2-hour stint. Anyway, Ashanti went on to premiere her new single '2:35 (I Want You),' while Keyshia premiered her new single 'I Don’t Wanna Be In Love.' Meanwhile, Keyshia didn’t seem to have put any thought into song selection and order. 

Did she not sit down with management to prepare a setlist that could see her have a slight edge over Ashanti? Ashanti was always going to be hard to beat due to her Ja Rule collaborations. Honestly, the right song selection and order would have helped her massively. 

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You're not suppose to play your biggest hits until the very end. Once she exhausted all of her hits in the early stages, she had to resort to playing B-Sides and songs that people weren't familiar with. Some songs were played twice! Ashanti won (scooting her way to victory), not only because she had the hits but because she used strategy. She ate and left no crumbs! 

As for the sponsors:

The best moment of the night 😂#Verzuz pic.twitter.com/UcJ39z8cSw

— Khyndal⚡️🖤 (@__therealkp__) January 22, 2021

Keyshia: Ciroc aint give me no check. 

Ashanti: THEY GAVE ME ONE!!!!!!

Assuming Keyshia is joking, they BOTH got paid by the way. The product placement was thick - Glossier, Doritos, Ciroc, and Apple. Mess. Perhaps they should consider commercial breaks at this point, because all that product placement in the actual battle looked tacky. 

Here's the moment things got a little awkward:

when Ashanti corrected Keyshia Cole on who was playing next round #Verzuz pic.twitter.com/CZZpa8zV0q

— Complex Ambition (@CmplxAmbition) January 22, 2021

She tried to punk Ashanti, and Ashanti was like "aht aht darling, not on my watch!" Giving off those lowkey Brandy vibes. She handled it well, but was clearly irritated. Overall, their vibes were completely different and didn't mesh well at all. Ashanti was serving positive/happy vibes and Keyshia was cold and miserable. I wished they paired Ashanti with Mya instead. With Ashanti's eventual mood switch, she was probably thinking the same.

Watch battle in full below.