It all began when Nicki complained about her song Anaconda being ignored in the Video of the Year nominations for the MTV VMAs and took a dig at 'other' artists and 'slim bodies' in a series of tweets. Taylor Swift, jumping the gun, assumed Nicki meant her and tweeted back: "I’ve done nothing but love and support you. It’s unlike you to pit women against each other. Maybe one of the men took your slot.
Then Katy Perry offered this unsolicited opinion:
Finding it ironic to parade the pit women against other women argument about as one unmeasurably capitalizes on the take down of a woman...
— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) July 22, 2015If you found that tweet hard to decipher, so did we. However, Katy was likely intending to accuse Taylor, not Nicki, of 'capitalising on the take down of a woman,' whatever that means.
While Katy holds no brief for Nicki, she and Taylor are widely believed to share a mutual animosity. Taylor's new song Bad Blood, up for Video of the Year at the VMAs, documents a feud with a rival singer, thought to be Katy.
Katy also put some skin into the game with a second, almost equally incomprehensible tweet about an omission from the nominations, presumably a reference to her friend Rihanna's Bitch Better Have My Money:
The real travesty is where is the shine for #BBHMMVideo when VMA eligibility period was 7/7/14-7/1/15 & that gem dropped 7/1... @MTV
— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) July 22, 2015Meanwhile, here's a timeline of the Nicki vs Taylor dust-up that appeared to have simmered down before Katy's tweets.
If I was a different "kind" of artist, Anaconda would be nominated for best choreo and vid of the year as well.
; NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015Ellen did her own anaconda video and did the #choreo lol. Remember her doing that kick . Even mtv did a post on the choreo @MTV remember?
— NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015U couldn't go on social media w/o seeing ppl doing the cover art, choreo, outfits for Halloween...an impact like that & no VOTY nomination?
NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015When the "other" girls drop a video that breaks records and impacts culture they get that nomination.
NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015If your video celebrates women with very slim bodies, you will be nominated for vid of the year
NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015@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..
Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) July 21, 2015Huh? 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
— NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015Oh but trust me. I'll be on that stage to collect my awards for vid of the year. Feeling Myself & Anaconda. NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015
@NICKIMINAJ If I win, please come up with me!! You're invited to any stage I'm ever on.
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) July 21, 2015I'm not always confident. Just tired. Black women influence pop culture so much but are rarely rewarded for it. https://t.co/2xOvJzBXJX
— NICKI MINAJ (@NICKIMINAJ) July 21, 2015