If you're going to drop a track called "shETHER," as did Remy Ma to open her insanely one-sided feud with Nicki Minaj, you had better understand the ring you're stepping into. Nas' "Ether," the track she's referencing, is the most famous takedown of one rapper by another that's ever been written. The track, a Jay Z diss, opens with gunfire and "Fuck Jay Z." Remy's "shETHER" opens with her saying "Fuck Nicki Minaj," but doesn't really go anywhere past that. Sure, she gets in some digs, but it wasn't exactly a career-ender.
Remy Ma's beef was that Nicki Minaj was supposedly sabotaging her career, which is kind of small potatoes considering how serious the rapper feuds of yore once were. But sure, it's legit: You don't mess with someone's paper. Still, Remy Ma would have done well to watch this scene from The Wire. To paraphrase: "You come at the queen, you best not miss."
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Nicki, in her response, was a lot like Omar hiding in that alley. "No Frauds" enlists Drake and Lil' Wayne to ether poor Remy Ma. The song makes reference to Remy's supposed plastic surgery, and Minaj made the video go just a bit further: She enlisted Remy's Love & Hip-Hop co-star and former friend Rashidah “Rah” Ali.
Rah pops up just as Nicki raps, “Rah took you to her doc, but you don’t look like Rah / Left the operating table, still look like nah.” Ouch.
Minaj flew all the way to London to film this very vicious video, which makes it clear just who the Queen of Rap – still — is.
(It's Nicki, if you were confused.)