The highly anticipated Instagram Live battle between Teddy Riley and Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds went down on Saturday (April 18) — sort of. As thousands of people tuned in at 9 p.m. EST, it was quickly apparent things weren’t going to go as planned.
For starters, there was no sound. And while Babyface was relaxed, holed up in his studio, Riley looked like he was getting ready to recreate Essence Fest.
For nearly a half-hour, the two veteran artists struggled to execute the battle while over 400,000 people watched. All viewers could hear on Riley’s side was playback and echoes whenever it was his turn to play a song.
Needless to say, it was a flop. Ageist jokes flew with many people blaming Edmonds’ and Riley’s ages (62 and 53, respectively) for their technical difficulties. By 10 p.m. EST, it was clear the audio wasn’t operating correctly, so they stopped and instructed viewers to come back in 30 minutes — despite the audience’s objections.
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Shortly after 10:30 p.m. EST, Babyface suggested it’d be better to postpone the battle.
“Tonight was really special … it’s only right that we postpone this thing and do it at a time when there aren’t any technical difficulties and everybody can hear the music the way it needs to be heard,” he said.
Unsurprisingly, Twitter erupted with hilarious memes and seemingly endless jokes and “Teddy” quickly became a trending topic.
Check out some of the best reactions below.
