Grammy Award-winning singer Usher has crowned himself the King Of R&B and said he’s the last of his kind during a recent interview.
According to reports, Usher declared himself the King Of R&B on an episode of SiriusXM and Radio Andy’s Bevelations. During the episode, he told host Bevy Smith that he deserved the title.
“King, whatever you wanna call it, yeah, I’ve been working to the point where I do own that, and I do deserve that,” Usher said on Aug. 22. “And I ain’t gonna ask for it no more. You’re gonna give it because I did work for it.”
He also weighed in on legendary music exec Diddy’s recent question to fans in which he asked them, “Is R&B dead?”
“He sounds nuts to me. It sounds crazy,” the veteran singer said. “Especially knowing he was a pioneer and understanding and beneficiary of it.”
He further explained that R&B is the root of Hip-Hop music.
“There would be no Hip Hop if there was no R&B,” he said. “It’s blasphemous to hear people say anything, especially Hip-Hop cats, to say anything about R&B. It’s been there. It’s gonna stay there as long as you exist.”
He continued, noting that “R&B is timeless” and “it ain’t gonna go away.”
In July, the “Good Love” artist responded to the public’s inquiries about him possibly doing a Verzuz battle against R&B crooner Chris Brown.
“Nah, there’s no Verzuz. I don’t think y’all [are] ready for nothing like that,” he said during an interview with Daily Pop on E!. “You might be ready for something like that on stage, maybe in the future. Stay tuned.”
As of late, Usher has been performing at his extended Las Vegas residency, which kicked off on July 15. His first set of shows are scheduled to end in October, and his second round of shows are set to take place from March to July in 2023.