Nicki Minaj has never been shy about speaking her mind, both in her music and anywhere else. The rapper even seems to relish in feuding with other musicians in a very public way. Sometimes she calls others out on social media, while in other instances, the shots are fired in song.
Currently, Minaj is embroiled in a battle of words with fellow hip-hop powerhouse Megan Thee Stallion. The two have not been close for years, but in the past few days, tensions flared, and now Minaj is looking to capitalize on the moment in the way she knows best: by scoring a hit single.
On Sunday, Minaj released a new song titled “Big Foot.” The tune dropped just hours after she announced it on social media, and it’s become a quick commercial success. Minaj’s song hasn’t just hit iTunes—it’s dominated the ranking of the bestselling tracks in America.
“Big Foot” is a diss track from Minaj against Stallion, and it’s in response to the latter musician’s new single “HISS,” which arrived on Friday and includes a line that Minaj–and countless fans of hers online–interpreted to be a dig at her husband and his status as a registered sex offender.
Minaj’s diss isn’t subtle in its digs, and in the cut, Minaj makes fun of the Grammy winner for being shot in the foot by fellow musician Tory Lanez and brings up her deceased mother.
As of Monday, four different versions of “Big Foot” were present on the U.S. iTunes chart. Both the original take of the single and an a cappella offering both quickly found their way into the top 10 on the list. Less explicit editions of both could also be found inside the top 40 as well, as fans rushed to buy all the different varieties of the track.
If “Big Foot” can continue to sell well for the next few days, the song may very well be headed right for the Billboard charts next week. The track is suffering from something of a handicap, as it was released several days into the tracking period, which started on Friday. That means that Minaj only has a few days in which to sell the cut to send it to lists like the Digital Song Sales chart and perhaps even the Hot 100.
The fact that there are four versions of “Big Foot” out now will help the title’s chances of becoming another chart win for Minaj. Billboard groups all editions of the same title into one entity for charting purposes, so fans buying all four–or even just more than one–are playing a big role in the tune’s future success, however great it may be.