Azealia Banks is once again stirring conversation with her unfiltered opinions, this time aiming at Doja Cat. Following the release of Doja’s latest project Vie, Banks took to X to accuse the Grammy winner of sounding too much like Nicki Minaj.
“Ok I love the girls and love Nicki but we can’t just be riding Nicki’s d**k like this,” Banks wrote. “Like a teeeny bit of inspiration or borrowing is okay and respectful … but the full on Nicki cosplays have to stop because it’s almost like mocking her. Which is rude.”
The critique hit harder given Banks had praised the album just days before, telling followers, “Wait I really like this doja record,” and later, “This is her best work. I’m obsessed with this. It’s so good.” That praise quickly turned into frustration when Banks decided Doja’s delivery felt less like originality and more like imitation. “Ugh, she almost had me,” she added.
This is not the first time Banks has weighed in on Doja’s creative direction. Last year, she speculated online about which lane the rapper might take next and warned she could slip into what she called a “tiered alt emo eartheater twigs rip off.” Banks instead suggested Doja experiment with adult contemporary influences in the style of artists like Zero 7, Sonique, and Seal.
Doja Cat herself has consistently acknowledged Nicki Minaj as one of her inspirations. She previously teamed up with Minaj on the Say So remix in 2020, though Nicki declined to appear on Get Into It (Yuh). In 2023, Doja addressed comparisons head on in her track Attention, rapping, “Why she think she Nicki M? She think she hot sh*t.”
With Banks reigniting the conversation, the debate around influence versus imitation in Hip Hop continues to spark reactions across socials.