Nicki Minaj has been one of the biggest names in rap since her debut album Pink Friday made her a household name. So why does one of the biggest names in the business feel the need to beef with up-and-coming female rappers?
The queen of rap has a history of getting into fights with other artists. Back in 2010, she had beef with Lil’ Kim and more recently has fought with both Megan Thee Stallion and Cardi B. This time, Minaj has chosen a new battle partner: 23-year-old Ohio-born rapper Latto.
It all started a couple weeks ago when Minaj vented her frustration over her newest hit, “Super Freaky Girl,” being moved from the rap category to the pop category for Grammy consideration. On an Instagram Live titled, “Dear Grammys,” the rapper complained that her song had been moved, but Latto’s song, “Big Energy,” had not.
Minaj took to Twitter, voicing more frustration with the Grammys’ decision, and then took things further by posting a direct message she had received from Latto. In the now-deleted tweet, Latto appears to support Minaj but doesn’t believe that she needs to mention Latto or her songs to stand up against the Grammys. Minaj then proceeded to call the “Big Energy” rapper a “Karen.” She also pointed out that Latto has brought up her admiration for Minaj in interviews over the years but failed to stand up for her in this instance.
Not one to stay silent, Latto responded by saying that she agreed with the 39-year-old rapper but thought her method of attack was “malicious.” She also pointed out Minaj’s age in a tweet saying, “Ur literally older than my mom tryna be a bully,” and the hashtag #40YearOldBully began trending. Latto then continued to tweet the rapper, posting compilations of times she felt Minaj subtly shaded her. She also shared recorded audio of the two arguing and DM screenshots between the two where Latto confronted the “Super Freaky Girl” singer for shady comments.
Soon the argument became a series of personal insults: Latto called out Minaj for her association with her husband who is a registered sex-offender and her brother who was sentenced to 25 years for child rape. Minaj dismissed the comments by replying, “News flash scratch off. I’ve never raped anyone. I’ve inspired millions. You’re one of them BOZO.” The rapper proceeded to accuse Latto of not caring about rape victims and brought up her collaborations with producer Dr. Luke and rapper Kodak Black, who have both been accused of sexual assault.
The feud eventually came to an end when Minaj deleted most of her tweets and posted a gif from Whitney Houston’s “One of Those Days” music video.
When we see Minaj making headlines for beef with another rapper, we can’t help but be reminded by her words from this radio interview, “Don’t play with me…I respect you and love you. I’ve said it in every interview, time and time again. And if that’s not good enough for you, mama, then it’s something deep rooted in you. Something is bothering you inside—that’s your insecurity bothering you.” We hope that Minaj knows just how inspirational she is and that her legacy does not ride on young rappers worshipping her every move.
The Grammy nominations for the 2023 awards ceremony will be announced on Nov. 15.
