Cardi B has denied speculation that her recent pregnancy photoshoot was a subtle jab at Nicki Minaj and her husband, Kenneth Petty.
The “WAP” rapper, who is expecting her third child with Offset, shared a series of photos on social media on Sunday showing off her bare baby bump as she posed on a motorbike in front of a graffiti-covered store.
“I can’t wait to meet my little baby,” Cardi captioned the photos she shared on Instagram.
The photos quickly garnered attention online, but not just because of Cardi’s pregnancy glow. Apparently, eagle-eyed fans noticed the word “pedophile” spray-painted on the security gate behind Cardi.
The word appeared above the word “homesick” and sparked speculation that Cardi was referring to Minaj’s husband, Petty.
According to Billboard, Petty is a registered sex offender and was convicted of attempted first-degree rape in 1995.
“Cardi B appears to be mocking Nicki Minaj’s family by posing in front of graffiti that reads ‘pedophile,'” one user posted on X, formerly Twitter, when reposting the photos.
Another added, “Lol wait why is there Pedophile written on the wall??……is this Nicki’s color?”
“She finished Nicki off so easily,” another commented.
“CardiB calls Nicki’s husband a criminal. Let’s see what Nik does. We know she’s scared to confront Cardi,” another wrote.
Cardi, who is known for being outspoken about rumors and reports about herself, spoke out on X on Monday to deny the allegations.
“First we picked a random street because the paparazzi followed us everywhere… this was supposed to be my first photo and we had to edit it for a few minutes because the photoshoot leaked,” Cardi explained in a tweet.
She continued, “Didn’t even have time to go through every detail because everyone was busy trying to expose my pregnancy as an ‘aha’ moment… Second, I ALWAYS say shit but I didn’t use my PREGNANCY photoshoot as a joke. Are you stupid??”
Cardi explained further in a next post that these graffiti were accidental and went unnoticed during the photo shoot.
“Fuck my makeup artist edited the pic because we didn’t have time for all that, it’s dated and timed and no one noticed the graffiti… secondly if I wanted to be mean I would have posted a ton of memes last week.. I KEEP TELLING YOU TO LEAVE ME ALONE!!” she wrote.
Speculation that Cardi B may have been shaming Minaj stems from a longstanding feud between the two rappers. Tensions between the two reportedly began in 2017 when Cardi attended Remy Ma’s performance at Hot 97’s Summer Jam festival, where Remy Ma performed her diss track to Minaj, “shETHER,” according to Complex.
The “Bodak Yellow” artist and the “Starships” hitmaker had a number of exchanges in interviews and social media posts in the immediate aftermath. Their feud also came to a head in 2018 at Harper’s Bazaar’s ICONS New York Fashion Week party, where Cardi infamously threw her show at Minaj during their altercation.
Meanwhile, Cardi B’s recent pregnancy news, which she announced in early August, comes as she prepares to welcome her third child with Offset. The announcement coincides with her second divorce filing from the Migos rapper.
The couple, who have had their ups and downs, share two children: daughter Kulture, 6, and son Wave, 3.
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