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Julia Beverly / Contributor via Getty Images, Simone Joyner / Contributor via Getty Images, and Aaron J. Thornton / Contributor via Getty Images
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Ray J performs onstage during 2025 ONE Musicfest, Bryson Tiller performs onstage at Day 1 of Wireless Festival 2025, and Leon Thomas performs onstage during 2024 ONE MusicFest
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Key Takeaways:
- Ray J believes only Chris Brown and Usher could musically outperform him at his peak.
- He dismissed Bryson Tiller and Leon Thomas, saying they “can’t mess with” him.
- The singer also talked about Tank, Jagged Edge and his RSVP groupmates in the same interview.
Ray J believes no one is beating him at his best — not even Bryson Tiller or Leon Thomas. On Tuesday (Nov. 18), the “One Wish” singer stopped by “Way Up With Angela Yee,” where he shared his thoughts on who could, or couldn’t, take him on at his peak.
“[There’s] only two people that’s beating me if I’m at my best. That’s Chris Brown and Usher,” Ray J said. “Everybody else can’t mess with me.” He went on to clarify that he only meant artists “out there right now,” not “the greats like Marvin Gaye and Michael Jackson.”
“I’m talking about Bryson Tiller. I’m talking about all y’all young n**gas,” the Everything You Want singer continued. Brian “B.Dot” Miller then threw out Leon Thomas’ name, to which he responded, “Who? Who is that?”
To jog his memory, Angela Yee sang one of the lines from Thomas’ smash hit “MUTT”: “I’m a dog, I’m a mutt.” Ray J humorously reacted, “I’m a dog, I’m a mutt, n**ga. I’m a real dog, n**ga. I’m going big on that n**ga.” The R&B star later mentioned Jagged Edge as a group he’d take on but admitted that Jodeci was “way above [his] pay grade.”
Next, Ray J brought up Tank. “[You] saw my six-pack, Tank. I got a fat stomach and a six-pack,” he said. “Tank can’t mess with me if I train, but it’s going to take me nine months.” Finally, the singer called out the other members of RSVP: Sammie, Bobby V and Pleasure P.
Tiller recently wrapped up supporting Brown’s “Breezy Bowl XX Stadium World Tour” in October, while Thomas is currently on the road as a part of his “Mutts Don’t Heel Tour.” All three artists were nominated for the 2026 Grammy Awards.
Tiller and Brown’s “It Depends” is competing for Best R&B Song and Best R&B Performance. Thomas, meanwhile, is in the running for both those categories as well as Album of the Year, Best New Artist and several others.