Cardi B Criticises Listeners for Expecting Her To Mention Nicki Minaj as a Female Rap Influence

Cardi B has pushed back against criticism over Nicki Minaj's absence from a discussion of her musical influences.

The Bronx rapper addressed the reaction on X Spaces on Wednesday, 21 October 2026, after an interview published that day prompted questions about the artists she had named.

In a profile for T: The New York Times Style Magazine, Cardi recalled watching her mother's Madonna DVDs.

She also named Lil' Kim, Foxy Brown and Trina as artists who helped shape her style and attitude. Minaj was not among them.

The omission drew online criticism, renewing attention to the rappers' longstanding rivalry. Cardi, however, did not mention Minaj by name in the reported X Spaces remarks.

Cardi B Explains the Artists Who Shaped Her

'This is what I grew up listening to. This is what I grew up seeing, especially it being from New York,' Cardi told listeners.

She recalled being 17 when another female rapper entered the scene. Although listeners interpreted her comments in the context of the Minaj debate, Cardi did not identify the performer in the available excerpts.

Her explanation distinguished between the music that shaped her upbringing and artists who gained prominence later. She discussed the influences behind her own taste, not a comprehensive history of women in hip-hop.

Cardi also mentioned Missy Elliott while recalling performers she heard and watched. Frustrated by the criticism, she told supporters, 'My fans, pay attention to me.' She did not name Minaj in that passage.

The attention is hardly surprising given the two rappers' history. Cardi and Minaj clashed at a New York Fashion Week party on 7 September 2018, an incident the Associated Press documented.

Their relationship has not always been defined by confrontation. Minaj publicly congratulated Cardi in September 2017 when 'Bodak Yellow' reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Both episodes form part of the history behind the latest scrutiny.

Still, the controversy began with a name missing from an interview. An omission can invite interpretation, but it doesn't launch a new attack or explain why the name was absent.

Cardi B Argues Female Rappers Must Develop Their Own Style

During the X Spaces conversation, Cardi turned to the distinctive identities of other women in rap. She described her own image through her New York upbringing, then contrasted it with Megan Thee Stallion, GloRilla, and City Girls.

She characterised Megan's style as playful, confident, and rooted in friendship. In Cardi's description, GloRilla brought a raw Southern sensibility. City Girls represented another approach, rooted in Miami.

These were Cardi's impressions of their musical personas, not judgements about their private lives. Her larger argument was that different sounds and identities let female rappers connect with audiences without copying one another.

'If you imitating other b*tches, you not gonna make it... because you are not being yourself,' she said.

Cardi also credited her own staying power to maintaining a recognisable identity. That was her explanation for her career, rather than proof that any particular approach guarantees success. She did not use the argument to deny Minaj's influence on hip-hop.

The magazine feature offered another example of her personal musical preferences. In a companion T Magazine video, Cardi chose Keyshia Cole's 2005 debut, The Way It Is, as the greatest album of all time.

She recalled listening to the record as a teenager and returning to it years later. Her selection reflected a longstanding personal attachment to Cole's music, much like her earlier references to Lil' Kim, Foxy Brown and Trina.

'Every woman should listen to that album,' she said. Her enthusiasm for Cole offered another glimpse of the music she grew up with, regardless of the names others expected her to include.