One of the most anticipated moments at the Soul Train Awards is the soul cypher. This year’s cypher participants included Musiq Soulchild, Elle Varner, Tone Stith, Jac Ross and Koryn Hawthorne.
With DJ D-Nice on the ones and twos, each vocalist delivered a solid freestyle over an instrumental of Aaliyah’s classic “Rock the Boat.” It was in honor of the 25th anniversary of Aaliyah’s self-titled and final album.
The 2021 Soul Train Awards aired on Sunday, Nov. 28. on BET. The night was full of performances from artists such as Silk Sonic, Ari Lennox, Summer Walker, Lucky Daye and more.
Ashanti and Maxwell were both recognized for their respective multi-decade careers. Ashanti received the Lady of Soul Award. Meanwhile, Maxwell took home the Legend Award. Both artists performed a medley of their greatest hits.
Watch Musiq Soulchild, Elle Varner, Tone Stith, Jac Ross and Koryn Hawthorne’s Soul Cypher performance below.