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Photo by L. Cohen/WireImage

Two of the most iconic soul voices went head to head in the latest Verzuz battle and the winner could not have been more obvious: the audience.

Gladys Knight and Patti LaBelle dressed in their Sunday’s finest to take us down memory lane as they shared their biggest hits and memories of their friendship that spans over the decades. Although fans were anticipating for LaBelle’s shoes to fly off at any given time during the battle (in which case they did while she sang her rendition of The Wizard of Oz’s “Over the Rainbow”), they didn’t intend on a surprise appearance from fellow legend, Dionne Warwick.

Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images

The hitmaker and vocal superstar joined in on the fun by performing her Grammy-winning charity single “That’s What Friends Are For” alongside LaBelle and Knight. The performance was followed by their 1991 classic “Superwoman”.

Over half a million fans joined in on Instagram Live, Apple Music, and the official Verzuz YouTube account to hear classics like “If You Don’t Know Me by Now”, “Midnight Train to Georgia”, and “Neither One of Us (Wants to Be The First to Say Goodbye)”.

Photo by Walter McBride/Getty Images

“This lady is so much fun to be with,” said LaBelle. “We’re not working together, we’re being together.”

The two matriarchs of R&B and Soul spent three hours celebrating and singing along to each other’s songs while effortlessly hitting each note. As Knight shined on the Fillmore stage with her glittered pantsuit ensemble and Labelle followed suit with her bedazzled microphone, it was clear that the two missed doing what they love most.

“We love what we do,” shared Knight. To which the Philadelphia native responded, “Girl, do you realize these seven months we’ve been off? You know how I’m crying? That’s why I have my shoes and my stage stuff up here like I used to do for real on stage when I’m on tour.”

The love was pouring in from former First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Queen Latifah, and many more as they joined the virtual audience to witness history.

Knight took to Twitter after the event to thank everyone for joining and how it was “truly a blessing to be with you!”

 

Tell us: Which legends do you want to see face off next?
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