The answer to the age-old question of which decade has the best music changes depending on who you ask. Camila Cabello aimed to settle the debate once and for all on The Late Late Show With James Corden.
Corden postulated that quality music peaked in 1999 with hits like “Mambo No. 5” and “No Scrubs,” but Cabello, who just released her record Romance, disagreed. In order to settle the debate, Cabello challenged Corden to a “riff-off,” a game where each sings snippets of popular songs from 1999 and 2019. And Cabello gave Corden a run for his money.
Corden began by wondering what songs from 2019 will hold up in history. Lizzo’s “Juice” and Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” were his answers, but Cabello appeared on stage to prove him wrong. “Maybe your music would have been better if it came out in 1999,” Corden told Cabello. “Right, when I was two years old,” Cabello quipped. “How about we settle this, James, between you and I, right here, right now?”
Cabello was joined by The Filharmonic to assist in adding her own spin to today’s popular hits. Cabello began with a soaring rendition of Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” and Corden responded with Ricky Martin’s “Livin’ La Vida Loca.” But Cabello wasn’t impressed with his choice. “Ricky Martin? OK boomer,” she said.
Corden retorted with Santana’s hit “Smooth.” But that didn’t impress Cabello, who followed up with a rendition of her boyfriend Shawn Mendes’ “If I Can’t Have You,” and Corden looked defeated. “That was incredible, all right, you win, maybe music is better today,” Corden said. But the two made up with a duet of Cabello’s own “Señorita.”
Watch Cabello and Corden go head-to-head on The Late Late Show above, and read our review of Romance here.
