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There was a time when Megan Thee Stallion and Nicki Minaj only had positive things to say about each other. In 2019, they released one of the biggest hits of the year with their collaboration on “Hot Girl Summer,” with Megan constantly citing Minaj as one of her biggest idols.
Then everything went wrong. Whether sparked by Megan's collaboration with Minaj's rival Cardi B or behind-the-scenes drama that hasn't yet been made public, the two rap stars are now at odds and busy releasing dissident tracks that contain thinly veiled contradictions against each other .
After Minaj, 41, specifically referenced a lyric from Megan's recent diss track “Hiss” in her own song “Big Foot,” fans have confirmation that the two former friends are now at war. Here is a timeline of their feud.
August 2019: “Hot Girl Summer”
As with many celebrity controversies, it all looked so promising at first. In the summer of 2019, Megan recently released her acclaimed mixtape “Fever” and was enjoying increasing popularity as an up-and-coming rapper.
In July, Megan was overjoyed when she was able to “meet” Nicki via a shared Instagram Live session: “We're choking, we're dead!” the Houston rapper declared as she joined the show. “B****, we love you! Since 2008, when I was in eighth grade and could listen to you.”
Minaj was grateful for the adoration and responded, “Congratulations on doing your thing, rapping and writing and going to school.”
Megan Thee Stallion in an Instagram Live with her official idol Nicki Minaj
(Screenshot/Instagram)
After the rappers' successful online chat, rumors quickly began circulating that they were collaborating on a new path to solidify their professional connection. This was soon confirmed by Minaj, who responded to a fan on Twitter (now X), claiming she wrote her verse shortly after listening to the music.
She wrote: “So true. I was close to losing my voice and it was so late that I already sounded like a man. But when I heard the song, I fell in love. Wrote it b4 I went to sleep. None of this was planned. I had no idea Meg was going to be live or that she wanted to go live in season two.”
“Hot Girl Summer,” which also features Ty Dolla Sign, was released on August 9 and peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
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August 2020: “WAP”
Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion in the video for “WAP”
(screenshot)
With Megan's star on the rise, a number of other artists were interested in collaborating with her, including Minaj's old sparring partner Cardi B. “WAP”, a belated Song of the Summer, was released in August 2020 as the lead single from the “The Coming.” second album from the “Bodak Yellow” star.
It was immediately polarizing due to the explicit nature of the lyrics, but was hailed as a triumph of sexual empowerment and became the first female rap collaboration to debut at the top of the Billboard Hot 100.
While the song itself was a hit, it also fueled speculation that Megan had feuded with Minaj due to the “Anaconda” rapper's long-standing feud with Cardi B.
Tensions between the two had gotten so bad that they were involved in a physical altercation at a New York Fashion Week party in 2018, where Cardi allegedly threw a shoe at the fellow rapper.
December 2020 / January 2021: “Seeing Green”
Nicki Minaj appeared to make fun of Megan Thee Stallion in her song “Seeing Green.”
(AFP via Getty Images)
In late 2020, Megan reportedly distanced herself from Minaj and her friends while publicly praising Cardi following her “WAP” success.
Minaj unfollowed Megan on Instagram in January 2021, prompting fans to label them a rival while looking for hints of a feud in their respective song lyrics. Months later, they were convinced that Minaj had taken a swipe at Megan in her song “Seeing Green,” in which she rapped, “A margarita pizza with parmesan and garlic. These bitches are thirsty; I can understand why they are alcoholics.”
September 2022: Queen Radio
After dismissing questions about Megan during a Queen radio show in September 2022, Minaj then went into detail about an alleged conversation with someone who, Minaj claimed, tried to get her to drink while she was pregnant and her suggested having an abortion.
“Imagine telling someone that you didn’t want to drink because you might have been pregnant at the time. Because you actively had a baby,” she said. “Imagine if that person said, 'Oh girl, you can go to the clinic.'”
Nicki continued, “Imagine posting photos of you being pregnant and the person not even liking it or saying congratulations. But then when you posted that Beyoncé sent you flowers to congratulate you, the person then tried to send you flowers because they were like, “Oh, I can take advantage of this opportunity,” like they did with everyone else also does. “She's going to hang the flowers. “I didn't even let her fuck in a fucking house.”
When a fan forwarded Minaj's comments to Megan, she responded with an all-caps post on X (formerly known as Twitter), where she simply wrote, “LIES.”
On the same show, Minaj appeared to make several references to an aspiring female rapper who she felt had supported and encouraged her, but then felt let down or betrayed.
Megan Thee Stallion at the “Mean Girls” premiere
(AP)
March 2023: “Red Ruby Da Sleeze”
Minaj released a new song, “Red Ruby Da Sleeze,” in March 2023, in which she appeared to take several swipes at her former colleague Megan.
Rapping over a sample of Lummidee's 2003 hit “Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh),” she rapped, “700 on the horses when we hit the road/But since Christopher, I ain't got no kickin'.” Horses.” Reeves.”
She later spat, “Dorito bitches are crazy for not making up their minds,” which was an apparent reference to Megan's signature song “Flamin' Hottie” for a Super Bowl commercial for Flamin' Hot Cheetos and Doritos.
The most pointed lyric came when Minaj rapped, “That .40 cal a make 'em dance like a go-go,” which appeared to be an obvious reference to rapper Tory Lanez, who shot Megan in the foot in a July 2020 incident lap. He allegedly yelled, “Dance, bitch!” while shooting at her.
Lanez was sentenced to 10 years in prison after a jury convicted him of first-degree assault, discharging a firearm with gross negligence and possessing a concealed and unregistered firearm in a vehicle.
Tory Lanez was convicted in the 2020 shooting death of Megan Thee Stallion
(AP)
January 2024: “Hiss” and “Big Foot”
The latest chapter in Megan and Minaj's rocky relationship began when Megan released her latest single, “Hiss,” on Friday (January 26).
The track opens with Megan declaring that she wants to “get this shit off my chest and put it to rest” before she later raps the lines: “These bitches ain't mad at Megan, these bitches mad at Megan's Law.” / Me “Don’t really know what the problem is, but I guarantee you, you don’t want me to start.”
Megan's Law refers to the US federal law that requires information about registered sex offenders to be available to the public. To some, this line is a veiled comment aimed at Minaj's husband Kenneth Petty, who is a registered sex offender after pleading guilty to attempted rape by force or fear when he was 16.
Just hours after releasing “Hiss,” Minaj went on a tirade on social media and listened to her song “Big Foot,” a diss song for Megan. The song was released in full on Monday (January 29), with notable lyrics including: “Bad b*** she like six foot, I call her, “Big Foot” / The b**** fell off, I said.” “Stand on your good foot.”
Nicki Minaj (left) and Megan Thee Stallion have been embroiled in a feud that has grown increasingly intense in recent years
(Getty)
Minaj is likely not only referring to Megan's height (5'10″ / 178 cm) and the fact that she was shot in the foot by Tory Lanez, but also repeats the line, “lying on your dead mama.” Megan's mother, Holly Thomas, died of a brain tumor in March 2019.
At the time of writing, Megan has not yet confirmed Minaj's new release.
The Independent has reached out to representatives for Megan and Minaj for comment.