The Barbs are back at it again, this time with the Hotties. Rappers and songwriters Nicki Minaj and Megan Thee Stallion have brought their beef to the public eye, which wasn’t on my 2024 bingo card. The two women have made subtle jabs at each other (mostly Minaj) through their recent discography, where many fans have made connections between the verses. It wasn’t until Megan Thee Stallion released her second single, “HISS,” and dropped the Megan Law bar that we knew.
The feud had initially begun with the two unfollowing each other two years after they collaborated with Ty Dolla $ign on Meg’s track, “Hot Girl Summer.” The two showed mutual support with each other, even after Megan was featured in Minaj’s enemy, Cardi B, the song “WAP.” It wasn’t until the unfollowing began that Minaj dissed Megan in her recent singles. Minaj released a few singles off her album “Pink Friday 2,” upon release, the track “FTCU” was a hit on TikTok. The track raps the verse, “Stay in your Tory lane, b**ch, I’m not Iggy,” which many speculate was a possible jab at Megan Thee Stallion, along with fellow rappers Tory Lanez and Iggy Azalea. This was just one of many.
In 2019, Tory Lanez was charged with concealed carry after allegedly shooting Megan in the foot after a house party in Hollywood Hills. After this situation blew up on social media, many victim-blamed Megan, and discourse about the mistreatment of black women rappers in the industry arose. In Aug. 2023, Lanez was sentenced to 10 years of prison due to the shooting.
On Jan. 24, Megan released “HISS,” which dropped zero names and was a clear diss at Minaj and whom she associates with. Upon release, the Megan’s Law bar shocked everyone as it was clear who she was talking about. In 2019, Minaj became a wife to Kenny Petty, a registered sex offender who was convicted of one to four and a half years in prison after attempted rape on a 16-year-old girl in 1995. Despite this information being public, Minaj still went through with the marriage and even had a child with this man.
Minaj clapped back with her diss track, “Bigfoot,” which convicted Megan of blackmail and other petty crimes. The song does name-dropping and doesn’t display her “queen-of-rap” title as she deserved.
Due to this situation, the two are gaining lots of attention on social media, which I believe was the whole point. The two have several things to promote, as Minaj just released her memoir album and teased a nail brand. On the other hand, Megan is working on her newest album and just dropped a collaboration with the athletic brand Nike. If anyone loves a good celebrity beef, it’s me, and I know I’m not alone. In the end, I’m in ride-or-die support of Megan and her situation as Nicki, though iconic, has been known to cause a few issues.
