Billie Jean King appears on The Ellen DeGeneres Show with guest host Brandi Carlile

On Friday, Billie Jean King appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres show, which is wrapping up this year after 19 seasons on air. While the namesake was out that day, guest host Brandi Carlile brought plenty of energy to the table and kept the laughs coming with a little help from her seven-year-old daughter Evangeline

King, who appeared on the program in celebration of Title IX’s 50th anniversary among other things, naturally discussed her 1973 Battle of the Sexes victory over Bobby Riggs. Speaking about the prep work to interview King, the Grammy-award winning singer shared that since Evangeline had recently taken up an interest in tennis, she wanted to give her the chance to present a question to the Hall of Famer.

Revealed Carlile, “Mom, I’m wondering if you’ll ask her exactly how many men she’s embarrassed.”

“One’s enough,” laughed King.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient then explained that when she was raised in the 1950s, there was no boasting about beating the opposite sex to be had when inquiring minds asked who prevailed.

“I’d say he won. Because I’d take care of his ego,” King said.

Carlile later reflected on her experience with the trailblazer, writing on Instagram, “If you would have told 16-year-old me that I would be hosting @theellenshow one day…I woulda glanced at the photo of @billiejeanking on my bedroom wall and made some smart assed quip about meeting her and hell freezing over.

“There are times when I legitimately cannot believe what has happened to me in my life so far… This was one of those times. The divide between the “then and now” got so narrow that I could feel my teenage self right at the surface of my skin.”

Backstage, King also met fellow guests Alicia Keys and Allison Russell. Among the additional topics the 78-year-old covered during the appearance included her autobiography, All In, and equal pay.