Nicki Minaj recently sparked a whole lot of fan speculation with some recent moves that some Barbz interpreted as shade towards Ice Spice. For those unaware, the former unfollowed the latter on Instagram and then told fans to stop asking questions about “other people” amid this drama. As such, many put two and two together, but this equation doesn’t really confirm whether or not there are real issues at play here. Nevertheless, DJ Akademiks recently responded to this during his livestream, defending the Trinidadian MC for her choices and for the way in which she’s conducting business with these artists.
Of course, Ak’s main point of defense for Nicki Minaj’s treatment of Ice Spice was to compare her to her Young Money partner and his fav, Drake. He said that Drizzy rubs a lot of artists the wrong way for taking control of publishing and masters, but the media personality justified this through the notion of the “Drake stimulus package.” He’s already defended this model to death before, so it’s no surprise that he understands why Nicki is moving in the way she’s moving. To be clear, this approach from a massive artist to a relatively smaller one isn’t necessarily an automatic point of condemnation, as any sort of deal in the music industry can turn sour if executed irresponsibly.
Here’s what Nicki Minaj had to say about rappers signing to white labels instead of her Heavy On It imprint, which many saw as an Ice Spice dig. “Motherf***er tell somebody they don’t want to sign with Heavy On It,” she expressed. “But then they’ll go and sign with the white peoples. And guess who the white peoples finna call? Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty. They always get the attention of the Barbz. If your name is not on [the new version of] Pink Friday 2, they’re not a Heavy On It artist.”
Meanwhile, this is what Ice Spice had to say about Nicki Minaj recently. “We don’t have the closest relationship, you know? But we’re definitely good,” she posited. “We’re mutuals. We had smash records together. I love us together. I think the world does too.”
About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a music and pop culture news writer for HotNewHipHop. He started in 2022 as a weekend writer and, since joining the team full-time, has developed a strong knowledge in hip-hop news and releases. Whether it’s regular coverage or occasional interviews and album reviews, he continues to search for the most relevant news for his audience and find the best new releases in the genre. What excites him the most is finding pop culture stories of interest, as well as a deeper passion for the art form of hip-hop and its contemporary output.
Specifically, Gabriel enjoys the fringes of rap music: the experimental, boundary-pushing, and raw alternatives to the mainstream sound. As a proud native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, he also stays up-to-date with the archipelago’s local scene and its biggest musical exponents in reggaetón, salsa, indie, and beyond.
Before working at HotNewHipHop, Gabriel produced multiple short documentaries, artist interviews, venue spotlights, and audio podcasts on a variety of genres and musical figures. Hardcore punk and Go-go music defined much of his coverage during his time at the George Washington University in D.C.
His favorite hip-hop artists working today are Tyler, The Creator, Boldy James, JPEGMAFIA, and Earl Sweatshirt.
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