The Truth Behind Nicki Minaj's Feud With Iggy Azalea

Nicki Minaj and Iggy Azalea have more in common than they might like to believe. The female rappers are no strangers to chart-topping success. They're both viewed as style magnates. They've collaborated with high-profile artists. And when they're not spitting rhymes, they're spitting venom at each other. Why the mutual disrespect? We've got the rundown on this evolving beef.

These ladies drew first blood in 2010 when a then-unknown Azalea tweeted "lmao at nikki saying she did the bet awards live. errrrr. if you say so girl," reported Grantland. It took a lot of audacity for a rookie Azalea to fire that shot at Minaj, whose career had already begun its meteoric rise. Urban Islandz reported that Minaj eventually responded to that tweet heat, labeling her new nemesis a "cornball" and basically instructing her to watch and learn.

At the 2014 BET Awards, Minaj won Best Female Hip-Hop Artist. "When you hear Nicki Minaj spit, Nicki Minaj wrote it," she said during her acceptance speech. According to The Daily News, those words were likely meant for Azalea. Though she didn't namecheck her adversary, the statement about writing her own rhymes was perceived as a dig at the Aussie's songwriting skills, or lack thereof—Azalea is rumored to employ ghostwriters. Minaj concluded her lecture with yet another veiled barb, saying, "I hope and pray that BET continues to honor authenticity." Again, the Harajuku Barbie didn't name names, but Azalea had been widely criticized for co-opting black culture through her music, Minaj's subtext was palpable, and another brawl was born, at least in the media's eyes.

After the contentious 2014 BET Awards, all seemed okay between Minaj and Azalea. The hip-hop vixens were reportedly complimentary toward one another while backstage at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards. The Hollywood Gossip said Azalea congratulated Minaj on her performances, and Minaj thanked her kindly. But just below the surface, trouble was brewing.

What happened next broke the ladies' short-lived ceasefire. Azalea shaded Minaj during an appearance on the celebrity talk show Watch What Happens Live in March 2016. During the heat-seeking missile that is the show's "Plead the Fifth" segment, the "Fancy" rapper told host Andy Cohen that Minaj has plenty of help when it comes to songwriting. "I have just as many people on my writing credits as she has on hers," Azalea said. "I know I write mine, and if she writes hers, I believe her, too. But you can't look at the credits and be like, 'Oh look at this massive difference!' It's the same number of people on both, so..." And with that, Azalea effectively exhumed the hatchet.

Azalea's loose lips on the talk show may have awakened a sleeping diva because the Black Widow's world was turned upside down days later when a phone video surfaced of her fiancé, NBA star Nick Young, allegedly admitting to cheating on her. An ESPN radio station in Houston spoke to gossip blogger Fameolous about the footage. The blogger suggested it was Minaj who leaked the tape in retaliation for Azalea's Watch What Happens Live interview. Fameolous said, "Somebody from Nicki Minaj's camp, a source, got the video and they sent it in. And they said, 'Here put this out because Iggy want to talk mess about Nicki Minaj. Put this out and let her know what her fiance is doing.'" Yikes. In our opinion, it seems beneath Minaj to sink to that level of bitterness over a perceived verbal diss. If she did indeed go there, expect this battle to escalate quickly.