What started out as a smooth single release for Ariana Grande’s “7 Rings” quickly turned rocky after multiple artists accused the singer of copying their songs.
The first point of contention for the song, which was inspired by a lavish shopping spree Grande took her closest friends on after her breakup with Pete Davidson, is about the flow and overall sound. Some fans pointed out that Grande’s track reminded them of Soulja Boy’s 2010 hit “Pretty Boy Swag,” only sped up and given a pop feel.
Soulja Boy posted a fan-made comparison video to Instagram that begs the question, did Ariana Grande steal Soulja Boy’s flow? The rapper doesn’t exactly answer yes or no. Instead, he just captioned the post, “Arianaaaa?????? Ariana?!”
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Next problem? The lyrics. New York-bred rapper Princess Nokia took to social media to point out what she believes is more than just an innocent coincidence. In a video, the rapper played “7 Rings” alongside “Mine,” a song from her 1992 mixtape.
"Does that sound familiar to you? Because that sounds really familiar to me,” Princess Nokia said in the clip. “Ain't that the little song I made about brown women and their hair? Hmm. Sounds about white.”
The lyrics from Princess Nokia’s “Mine” are: “Rock my many styles then go natural for the summer / Hair blowing in the hummer / Flip the weave, I am a stunner / It’s mine, I bought it / It’s mine, I bought it.” Similarly, on “7 Rings” Grande raps about hair: “My wrist, stop watchin’, my neck is flossin /Make big deposits, my gloss poppin’ / You like my hair? Gee, thanks, just bought it / I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it.”
Grande stans are passionately shooting down the accusations, saying Princess Nokia in particular “shouldn’t flatter herself thinking Ariana actually knows who she is.” Did Grande full-on copy, though? The jury is still out. Decide for yourself, take a listen to all three songs below.
Grande has yet to respond to the accusations.