On Tuesday, the MTV Video Music Awards released their nominations for the upcoming show. Among the nominees for the much-anticipated Video of the Year award, there was one video notably missing: Nicki Minaj's "Anaconda" — aka the most talked about video of 2014.
Minaj did not take the slight well, and took to Twitter to air her grievances. In one tweet, she took a not-so-subtle shot at women with "very slim bodies."
If your video celebrates women with very slim bodies, you will be nominated for vid of the year
Taylor Swift, who was nominated for her B-movie action flick extravaganza "Bad Blood," identified herself as the object of the tweet. She responded to Minaj:
@NICKIMINAJ I've done nothing but love & support you. It's unlike you to pit women against each other. Maybe one of the men took your slot..
... but Minaj played innocent:
Huh? U must not be reading my tweets. Didn't say a word about u. I love u just as much. But u should speak on this. @taylorswift13
A clash of titans. Swift and Beyoncé are the only two women nominees for Video of the Year. And Beyoncé is not often described as being a very slim-bodied woman. So if not for Swift, it's unclear who the tweets are meant for (except for nominees from years past, perhaps).
Yet Minaj claims the Swift shade is not her primary issue. Her issue is that women with curvy bodies can frequently be overlooked in this context.
@taylorswift13 I'm still confused as to why u just tweeted me when I made it abundantly clear... pic.twitter.com/A5kJyi6fQC
And yet, Twitter remains fixated on the Minaj-Swift showdown.
Watching this @NICKIMINAJ v @taylorswift13 twitter drama like pic.twitter.com/KyQN8VZ8g9
when mom and mom are fighting pic.twitter.com/uW5rZVDqSD
Katy Perry is like pic.twitter.com/RDw3QzEd9U
CRYING https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMXKZEAIG0o ...
I mean other rappers don't even come for Nicki because they know it will not end well on any level
We'll let that run its course. Once the pure adrenaline from watching two of pop's biggest female stars trade shots on Twitter wears off, we can have a productive conversation on body discrimination in pop music. Minaj has pointed this out several times before, specifically in connection to the "Anaconda" video.
Swift tried to extend an olive branch with the following tweet:
@NICKIMINAJ If I win, please come up with me!! You're invited to any stage I'm ever on.
But it's only prompted the ire of Minaj fans and Minaj herself.
Nicki does not want to be in your squad. She probably doesn't want a hug. Please girl, I'm cringing right now.
Nicki: society is biased, and it shows in our traditional cultural accolades Taylor: I'll invite you to the secret party, ask ahead of time
Nothing I said had to do with Taylor. So what jabs? White media and their tactics. So sad. That's what they want. https://twitter.com/onairwithryan/status/623624518074892288 ...
We'll have to see how it all runs its course.
Me, going back & forth between @taylorswift13 & @NICKIMINAJ page pic.twitter.com/PUlnFnwusE