Dionne Warwick isn't just a legendary singer, she's also the undisputed Queen of Twitter and has been since the moment she joined in 2020 and began dropping pearls of wisdom—and roasting younger musicians—throughout the worst days of the pandemic.
This week, Warwick got to prove once again that nobody does it better on the bird app than she does when commentators at the U.S. Open mistook her for one of her equally legendary contemporaries.
While scanning the crowd during Serena Williams' match against Anett Kontaveit, broadcasters Mary Carillo and Chanda Rubin pointed Warwick out as one of the many luminaries in the stands.
Except they didn't point her out as Warwick, but rather as fellow legend Gladys Knight, who was also in attendance.
And you know Warwick wasn't about to let it slide.
See her perfect response below.
\u201cHi, I\u2019m Gladys Knight\u2026 and instead of taking that midnight train to Georgia, I won\u2019t walk on by but will say a little prayer for you \ud83d\ude02\ud83d\ude10\u201d— Dionne Warwick (@Dionne Warwick) 1662049204
In a flawless tweet that was equal parts good-natured and shady as hell, Warwick wrote:
"Hi, I’m Gladys Knight… and instead of taking that midnight train to Georgia, I won’t walk on by but will say a little prayer for you 😂😐"
Warwick used references to some of her and Knight's biggest hits to make her point.
"Midnight Train to Georgia" is perhaps Knight's most-signature tune, while "Walk On By" and "Say a Little Prayer for You" are among Warwick's most instantly identifiable standards.
The whole thing began with a moment of confusion for Carillo and Rubin.
\u201cUnacceptable, from both of them.\u201d— Novaxx Djokoverit. \ud83d\ude44 (@Novaxx Djokoverit. \ud83d\ude44) 1661988345
As the cameras panned the stands, Rubin commented they'd "got some more stars" in the audience, to which Carillo enthusiastically exclaimed "Gladys Knight!" just as a camera landed on Warwick.
But as Carillo explained in a tweet, she was looking into the crowd itself, where she had spotted Knight, rather than the monitor showing Warwick on camera.
\u201c@Stevies_Wonder Too bad I was initially looking at the court (where Auntie Gladys was in the stands) and not our program monitor that showed Ms. Dionne... mistake was immediately corrected.\ud83e\udd26\ud83c\udffd\u200d\u2640\ufe0f\u201d— Novaxx Djokoverit. \ud83d\ude44 (@Novaxx Djokoverit. \ud83d\ude44) 1661988345
Rubin also responded to Warwick's tweet on the matter, calling it an honor to be shaded by a legend.
\u201c@dionnewarwick I will take all the shade if its coming from Ms. @dionnewarwick So much respect tho I could never confuse you with another Queen Ms. Gladys Knight Maybe too much Deja Vu \ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd\u2764\ud83c\udfbe\u201d— Dionne Warwick (@Dionne Warwick) 1662049204
For her part, Knight took the whole thing in stride, calling it an honor to be mistaken for her "sister" Warwick.
\u201cDionne and I have been sisters for a long time and I hope she is as honored to be mistaken for me as I would be her. I\u2019m sure it was an honest mistake. It was a blessing to be in the house to see Serena\u2019s greatness.\u201d— Gladys Knight (@Gladys Knight) 1662057261
On Twitter, Warwick's response had many people cheering.
\u201cPerfect tweet.\u201d— Jemele Hill (@Jemele Hill) 1662051174
\u201cWe are all so unworthy of the Queen of Troll\u201d— Shannon in Ohio 4 (@Shannon in Ohio 4) 1662061521
\u201cLOL. Ms. Warwick is undefeated on this platform.\u201d— Sherrilyn Ifill (@Sherrilyn Ifill) 1662058647
\u201cThey tried to make you over!\u201d— Patton Oswalt (@Patton Oswalt) 1662077735
\u201cWerk!!!!\u201d— Laverne Cox (@Laverne Cox) 1662061104
\u201cGame. Set. Match. \ud83d\ude0d\u201d— Leslie Uggams (@Leslie Uggams) 1662053439
\u201cThis tweet is the best thing that ever happened to me.\u201d— Rocky Mountain Mike (@Rocky Mountain Mike) 1662051707
\u201cWe knew Auntie Dionne wasn\u2019t letting that slide!\ud83e\udd23\u201d— Lori Granito \ud83d\udc9b\ud83d\udc1d\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08\u270a\ud83c\udffe (@Lori Granito \ud83d\udc9b\ud83d\udc1d\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08\u270a\ud83c\udffe) 1662049659
\u201cDo you know the way to San Jose? It's not the midnight train to Georgia.\u201d— Keith Boykin (@Keith Boykin) 1662050403
Warwick and Knight both emerged on the music scene in the 1960s and were atop the charts throughout the next two decades. They collaborated in 1985 on a charity cover of Rod Stewart's "That's What Friends Are For" that also included Stevie Wonder and Elton John.
It went on to become the #1 single of 1986 while raising $3 million to combat the AIDS epidemic.
