BET has seemingly severed its relationship with the Barbs.
Network execs issued a public apology Monday after its Twitter account sent out a snarky tweet about Nicki Minaj, which likely led to the rapper canceling her upcoming BET Experience performance.
Monday’s tweet, which has since been deleted, celebrated Cardi B’s historic Grammy best rap album win, while seemingly mocking Nicki for not achieving that feat. On Sunday, Cardi B became the first solo female artist to win in the Grammys’ best rap album category.
Shortly after the tweet, the “Chun-Li” rapper announced she would no longer participate in the BET Experience, BET’s weekend of concerts and events in June.
“Young Money will no longer be apart of the BET Experience or award show,” she tweeted. Her fans, known as Barbs, quickly came to the rapper’s defense.
Lil’ Wayne was also slated to perform, but it’s unclear if he has canceled his performance.
The network issued an apology on its site, which also noted that executives had privately apologized to Minaj for the offensive tweet.
“The post does not reflect how we feel about Nicki. And further does not reflect our company values,” the statement reads. “We deeply apologize for the hurt, disappointment and confusion that this post has caused. We are committed to doing everything we can to address the situation.”
According to the statement, the network plans an internal audit to alleviate the rogue tweet issue.
Cardi B reportedly responded to the controversy around her Grammy win and the Nicki Minaj issue.
"It's not my style for people to put other people down to uplift somebody else.
"That's not my style and that's not what I'm with," she said. "I don't support that,” the rapper said in a now-deleted video.
The 26-year-old rapper, who resides in Atlanta, deactivated her Instagram account late Monday after an expletive-laden series of posts about her Grammy win.
There has been no public response from Minaj since the apology has been issued. However, the 36-year-old lyricist and actress did use her Twitter platform to sing the praises of her fans.
The two rappers had been embroiled in literal and online battles in 2018. At a September Harper’s Bazaar party, Minaj and Cardi were involved in a physical altercation. The rappers have also gone back and forth on social media about their respective reigns as the premier female hip-hop artist.
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