R&B diva Ashanti has recovered from her COVID-19 diagnosis that halted her anticipated “Verzuz” battle against songstress Keyshia Cole. On Saturday, Jan. 2, the “Rain On Me” singer penned a note to fans telling them that she feels so much better.
“Starting off the New Year Amazing and COVID free!!!” Ashanti wrote. “Got my negative results back 2 days ago! Happy New Year y’all!!! Let’s go 202Won,” she continued before adding two praying hand emojis and thanking God.
“Feeling grateful 🙏🏽 My parents and I got our negative results back right in time to start off the New Year healthy, happy & loved. Wishing y’all all an Amazing 202WON. 🎉🎉🎉 #grateful,” Ashanti captioned the screenshot message post to fans.
Fans were joyful for the songstress’s recovery.
“Best news 🙏❤️💪.”
“Continued Blessings to you and your family in this New Year 2021.”
“Stay in the house until the Verzuz battle!”
“Praise God! 🙌🏽🙏🏽❤️.”
“And now we ready for that Verzuz!”
The “Verzuz” battle was set to take place on Dec. 12, but the 40-year-old revealed just before then on Instagram that she had tested positive for the coronavirus.
Ashanti did try to salvage the show by telling fans in a live stream that she was still ready to battle against Cole in the safest way possible.
“Me and Team Apple have been on the phone since late last night, early this morning trying to figure out how to do it. … I’m super ready to do it,” Ashanti said. As to how she contracted the virus, Ashanti insisted that it was through a family member and not her continuous trips out of the country.
“I came home, and I hugged a family member that actually ended up being positive,” she explained. “I didn’t know he was positive, he didn’t know he was positive, so when he went to get tested, I was like ‘Oh f–k.’ Then I got tested last night, and that’s what it was.”
The “Good Good” singer also dispelled any rumors that she faked her diagnosis as a way to escape battling Cole. “It’s a lot of ignorance, and it’s a lot of people that have negative things to say. COVID is not anything to play with,” she said, starting at the 8:34 mark.
“People have died from it. People that I know have died from it. For people to think that I would fake that … a part of me feels like I shouldn’t even address that, but just to be very clear that there’s no reason, no benefit at all for me to sit up here and tell the world that I tested positive for COVID,” Ashanti added.
Cole showed her support for the New York native by telling her that her health was more important than keeping the battle date.
Now that Ashanti is feeling much better, the ladies will go head to head — or more like song for song — in their rescheduled “Verzuz” battle on Saturday, Jan. 9.
