Nearly two weeks after Cardi B dropped her collab with Kanye “Ye” West and Lil Durk, she followed up the buzz of “Hot S—t” with a music video that defied gravity. In the visual, released on July 12, Cardi slayed in several curve-hugging outfits throughout various CGI backdrops. The video opened up with Cardi looking red hot in a black latex corset that was completely open at her chest, which was only covered by small latex pasties. She paired the bold look with mesh sleeves, black latex gloves, and over-the-knee boots. The outfit was embellished with silver robotic-looking adornments throughout.
Cardi also stunned in a figure-caressing white floor-length gown that featured a neckline that dropped below her belly button had a wavy hem, giving a glimpse of her chest and toned torso. The dress also had wavy cutouts on each of her thighs, which showed the Bronx native’s tattoos underneath. In the scene, Cardi’s hair was lit on fire and she danced with flames in each of her hands. Other outfits worn by Cardi included a shirt made completely of draped diamonds and a trench coat with gun embellishments over her chest.
While “Hot Sh—t” caught fire for being Cardi’s first solo song of 2022 (and the first since 2021’s “Up”), listeners also picked up on Ye’s verse. “I’m just sayin’ now I start to get used to the pain / Til one day I say, ‘f—k it,’ brought my masseuse on the plane,” Kanye sang, before dropping a line about the media and his kids. “‘Where you done that? Where you live at?’ Another headline, ‘Where your head at?’ ‘N—, go home, where your kids at?’,” he said, noting the people covering his strife with Kim Kardashian “be on my nerve.”
“Hot Sh—t” was first released on July 1 through Atlantic Records. First teased during the 2022 BET Awards on June 26, Cardi dropped the song — reportedly older than 2020’s “WAP” — a week later. However, days before the release, Cardi went online to vent her frustrations. “I will not be releasing a music video with this song,” she told fans. “I just don’t feel like doing too much this time around. I’m just exhausted with everybody [and] I’m so tired of people not doing their f—king job correctly.”
Cardi said she wanted to cancel the release of “Hot S—t” because the video wasn’t ready in time but decided to drop the song and focus on the next track. “I’m already working on the next record,” she said. “I’m already planning the rollout for the next record. It’s not gonna be a couple of months, this and that, after this record. I know I’ve been really lowkey with sh—t, but I’m ready to be ‘outside, outside, outside.'”
She also told Apple Music’s Zane Lowe that she didn’t even want to talk about the music video because it bothered her so much, according to Uproxx. “This video has brought me so much drama. So this is the first time I ever do CGI. I’m very particular on how I like my things, and I really like when things look super realistic. I like building sets, or I like to be in a place,” she explained. “I couldn’t maneuver or move how I wanted to, because I was very confused. After I finished the video, I find out that this s—t takes so long. I did this video around March, and it’s still not even ready yet. And it’s just so frustrating that I’m like, ‘You know what? Just put the f—king song out. I don’t even give a f—k anymore. I’m over it.’”
“Hot Sh-t” might have reignited some simmering beef between Cardi and Nicki Minaj, who made her return to music on July 1 at the Essence Festival. During the show, “Monster” — her song with Ye, a longtime collaborator and friend — began to play. Nicki then stopped the show. “A monster though!” she said. “A monster though! But we don’t f—ck with clowns.” She then had the DJ cut the song and moved on with her set.
During her appearance at the Wireless Festival, Nicki also cut “Monster” from the setlist, and Hip-Hop DX reported that Kanye unfollowed Nicki on Instagram following her comments. Nicki hasn’t explained the “clown” comments, but fans have assumed that Ye’s involvement with Cardi was the impetus for her remarks.