Source: Timbaland, Elon Musk, Swizz Beatz / Verzuz
Swizz Beatz took to social media to respond to the backlash following his announcement Verzuz in collaboration with Elon Musk and X, formerly of Twitter.
On Friday (June 21), Swizz Beatz shared a set of photos in an Instagram post showing himself attending the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity with fellow producer and artist Timbaland. He was at the festival on Wednesday, where he and Timbaland made the surprise announcement of a deal with Elon Musk to release all future content through X, formerly Twitter. The first photo shows the two in t-shirts highlighting the move, with a quote from Swizz emblazoned on it, saying, “Better to show than tell.” This was echoed in the post's caption, with Swizz Beatz adding, “Blessings to all” with emojis.
Comments on the Instagram post weren't so happy, with people calling out the two big producers for making a deal with a polarizing figure like Musk and breaking the news in June tennis. “It's nice to 'show us', but don't play in our face and act like people have no good reason to question this partnership,” one commenter wrote. “But nobody said anything before we've been on this platform since Verzuz started,” Swizz Beatz wrote in response.
Another commenter wasn't so kind, writing: “It's crazy how we always have to go and get the oppressor to help us. What did you need #verzuz to broadcast from the moon??? You didn't need this man. Owning something 100% and then having your oppressor have a say in your business works backwards.” Others also pointed out how Swizz had to be more understanding since he returned from the hajj with his family before the Cannes Lions Festival.
The post comes on the heels of a joint announcement with Timbaland, where the Ruff Ryders CEO was tight-lipped about the collaboration. “We are extremely excited to have found the best partner for Verzuz,” he said in the statement. “Not only are we excited to have Verzuz at X, but we're excited to help X build the largest entertainment company in the world. I would like to thank Elon Musk, Linda Yaccarino, Brett Weitz, Mitchell Smith and the entire X team for believing in Verzuz's vision. We can't wait to get to work.”
Both also promised to build “Entertainment Businesses” at X in the future.
