Nicki Minaj's swipe at Grammys for changing song category pulls Latto into Twitter feud

Nicki Minaj is beefing with a fellow artist on Twitter, again. This time, the "Anaconda" rapper is going back and forth with "Big Energy" musician Latto.

The exchange on Twitter began with Minaj reacting late Thursday to the Recording Academy's decision to challenge her intentions to submit hit "Super Freaky Girl" for rap nominations at the 2023 Grammys. The Recording Academy's rap committee decided that the song should instead vie for a pop solo performance nomination, despite her song topping Billboard's Hot Rap Songs chart since it dropped in August.

Minaj wasn't expecting the pivot to pop. At the Grammy Awards, a majority of Minaj's nominations have been for rap categories, from her first nod in 2011 for Ludacris collaboration "My Chick Bad" to her 2016 rap album nomination for "The Pinkprint."

"They stay moving the goalposts when it comes to me...in order for them to uplift the people who they want to shine," she said in a 16-minute video posted on Instagram on Thursday.

While speaking out about the Grammys' decision on Instagram, Minaj latched onto Latto's hit "Big Energy," suggesting that it also should be moved to the same category as "Super Freaky Girl."

"If you can't tell by now, there is a concerted effort to give newer artists things that they really don't deserve over people who have been deserving for many years," Minaj continued.

Minaj then expressed concern for the Grammys voting process, when voters might have to decide whether to choose between her and the likes of Harry Styles or Adele, who have both taken home pop Grammys. She later echoed her grievances on Twitter, still mentioning Latto.

"I have no prob being moved out of the RAP category as long as we r ALL being treated FAIRLY," Minaj tweeted Thursday evening. "If ["Super Freaky Girl"] has 2B moved out of RAP then so does Big Energy!"

Like clockwork, Minaj's devoted fans supported her tweet and pulled up the receipts of Latto seemingly calling "Big Energy" a pop song. "Yikes," Minaj replied to a fan's tweet. The rapper then noted that her 2015 record "Anaconda," which is similar to "Super Freaky Girl," was nominated for the rap song Grammy in 2016.

Minaj continued, tweeting that the Grammys pivot is "no diff from a 9-5 where you should speak up for yourself if you know you're a great employee & continue to be purposely sabotaged."

After seeing Minaj's not-so-subtle nod, Latto tweeted "all these awards/noms I can't even celebrate," and began firing back at the musician. Latto said she reached out to Minaj via text before taking their feud to Twitter. She said she agrees with Minaj's points about fairness, but added "the way u going about it seems malicious."

Latto said Thursday wasn't the first time she's avoided "subtweets" from the "Super Bass" rapper and called Minaj a "bully." As Thursday evening went on, Latto shared her collection of screenshots of Minaj fans seemingly facing criticism from Minaj for even mentioning the "Big Energy" singer.

Replying to a since-deleted tweet from Minaj, Latto said that the rap veteran was "my dream collab."

"Like I told you otp I looked up to u ...u still never answered my question about where the random shade starting coming from," Latto tweeted, sharing screenshots of a private conversation she had with Minaj.

On Thursday night, Latto said that the tweets between her and Minaj were no longer "JUST about a Grammy category," but instead about the tension between her and Minaj, who allegedly said she's not "flourishing" and no one cares about her "little song."

Latto tweeted late into the night, bringing up Minaj's marriage to Kenneth Petty (who was convicted of attempted rape in 1995) and recordings of a heated phone conversation with the rapper.

Days before the Grammys-prompted conflict between the two rappers, Latto told The Times that she feels women in rap are in the spotlight.

“I feel like later on, years from now, we’re gonna look at this time for female rap and be like, ‘Wow, this was like a special moment. We all got different styles, we all look different, we’re all from different cities and we’re all thriving at the same time.’”

Minaj is known for speaking out. In September she filed a $75,000 defamation lawsuit against gossip blogger "Nosey Heaux" for her comments about Minaj and her family. Minaj alleged that Marley Green, the personality behind "Nosey Heaux," claimed the rapper was "shoving all this cocaine up her nose" and made crass remarks about her 1-year-old son.

Minaj alleged in the lawsuit and on Twitter that Green is working for another female rapper with intentions to boost that unidentified rapper's career.

“Now let’s hope the ppl you guys r doing all this dirty work for love you enough to hire top notch lawyers for you & to pay your bills once I own your blogs, your shows, those IG pages y’all tried to protect so bad,” Minaj tweeted. “Couple artists in the folder too. I’ll own your publishing. Duds.”

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.