Were SWV and XSCAPE Able to Pull Off an Epic Concert Together? Here's What Happened

After weeks of prep, feuds and drama, girl groups SWV and XSCAPE were finally ready to take the stage together for a one-night special event on SWV & XSCAPE: The Queens of R&B — and, unsurprisingly, they “killed it.” 

“XSCAPE and SWV showed up and showed out. We killed that performance, together as a whole,” XSCAPE’s Tamika Scott said after the Los-Angeles area concert.

Did the SWV and XSCAPE Concert Happen?

The ladies performed to a packed crowd at Toyota Arena, pulling out all the stops in an epic performance with high-tech visual effects, coordinated black-and-silver costumes, and of course, the hits that made them famous. 

“The fans loved it,” SWV’s Leanne “Lelee” Lyons said as the women huddled backstage to celebrate.

By all accounts the show was a smashing success — but it almost didn’t happen. In the weeks leading up to the concert, the two ‘90s groups sparred with each other over whether or not they would co-headline the show (XSCAPE wanted to be the sole headliner), who would end the show, and whether they’d be able to pull it together in time. 

Tensions were even high during the tech rehearsal after one mistake after another continued to delay the rehearsal. 

“Everything has been so chaotic. We still don’t know everything that’s about to happen and how it’s going to happen,” Lelee said.

While SWV seemed to have it together, the ladies of XSCAPE were still working on polishing the act, much to the frustration of SWV’s Cheryl ‘Coko’ Gamble, Tamara “Taj” Johnson-George and Lelee.

“We’ve got 20 minutes to get this show together and I can’t even front, I’m at my wits end with this s--t right now,” a frustrated Taj burst out at one point.

Add that to the turmoil within XSCAPE itself as the Scott sisters, Tamika Scott and Latocha Scott-Bivens, continued to feud with each other over accusations of body shaming and stolen money, and the drama looked like it could reach a breaking point at any moment.

Luckily, the women were able to put it all aside on the night of the concert and deliver a high-power performance that got fans on their feet.

“We are you know, still professional artists, at the end of the day so we’re going to go out there and give you a great show and it’s gonna feel just as pleasant and real as we can make it,” XSCAPE’s Tameka “Tiny” Harris said.

What Happened at the SWV and XSCAPE Concert

SWV opened the show with “Anything” their 1994 hit that once reached #18 on the Billboard Hot 100 list, even inspiring XSCAPE members Tamika and Kandi Burruss to sing along backstage.

“SWV, we start our show with ‘Anything’ 'cause it’s a party song, It’s going to get the crowd up,” Coko said, adding they were “hip hop girls, so we have fun.” 

XSCAPE followed with their 1993 hit “Love on My Mind,” which once reached #46 on the Billboard Hot 100 list.

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“All that arguing and stuff that we were doing, it doesn’t matter. It’s this, right here, the response from our fans,” Kandi said. “You hit them with a smash as soon as you get the show started. It gets everybody on their feet.” 

The ladies even joined the stage together to sing XSCAPE’s “Is My Living in Vain.” 

“We were 15, 16, 17 years old, going to Jermaine [Dupri] singing ‘Living in Vain,’ and I’m talking about 29 years later, we are here still singing,” an awed LaTocha said of the group’s long road since meeting Dupri, their music producer.  “We’re finally here and everybody standing next to — I’m like wow, we did it, ladies.” 

The crowd was on their feet again, belting out the lyrics and pulling out their lighters and cell phone lights, as SWV performed their triple-platinum hit “Weak.” 

“‘Weak’ is huge. Do you hear them singing? Yes, because this song is humongous,” Coko said, adding she still felt the hit should have been the final song of the night.

Instead, XSCAPE closed out the show with their own hit, “Understanding” and while LaTocha did later admit the brewing tension with her sister was on her mind, the women didn’t let it get in their way of delivering to their fans.

“My sister and I aren’t really speaking, you know, even on the stage … we don’t have the same chemistry as we did before. A lot of times we’ll kind of go by each other and smack each other on the butt or you know kind of hit each other, and say, ‘Girl, you do your thing’ or ‘Sing, sis.' I’m not getting any of that, but it’s OK,” she said. “This moment is bigger than even that.” 

It’s too soon to tell if the ladies will take the stage together again any time soon, but some of the ladies said they’d be up for it, so fans can hold out hope that the two powerhouse groups may join forces again.

Watch all episodes of SWV & XSCAPE: The Queens of R&B, streaming now on Peacock.