March is a month usually associated with the color green, but Nicki Minaj left it “red” all over with her new song. On Friday (Mar. 3), Nicki, 40, dropped “Red Ruby Da Sleeze,” her first song of 2023 and first solo track since her chart-topping “Super Freaky Girl.” Some fans speculated about some possible Megan Thee Stallion shade on the track, and there are some lyrics that may be some disses towards the rapper.
At one point in the song, Nicki raps “I don’t f*** with horses since Christopher Reeves,” referring to the actor who was paralyzed after falling off a horse. Some fans think the ‘horse’ reference is a jab towards the ‘Stallion’ in Megan’s rap name. Plus, many pointed out that Christopher Reeves’ accident happened in 1995, which also happened to be Megan’s birth year. In another part of the song, Nicki seemingly references Megan being shot by Tory Lanez when she sings, “That .40 cal make ’em dance like a go-go.” Tory was found guilty of shooting Megan and it’s reported that police found a .40 caliber Glock 22 on the scene.
Nicki and Megan previously collaborated on “Hot Girl Summer”, but seemingly had a feud after that. When Megan worked with Nicki’s nemesis, Cardi B, on “WAP,” some Barbz took it as a betrayal. “I really hate the fact that [people do that]. It’s really like a lot of the fans,” she said during a 2019 iHeart interview. “They really make it seem like you’re picking sides. I really, really, really like both of them. They’re two different people, two different rappers. It’s not even the same. I feel like we need to stop trying to compare them.”
In 2022, speculation over their beef was cranked up a notch when Nicki released a remix of “Super Freaky Girl” the same week Megan put out Traumazine. Megan’s song “Gift & A Cuse” contains likes “Fix your face, b**** / you hurt, hurt, hurt / all that talkin’ ain’t making me nervous / Feelin’ yourself, put down them perkys,” which some took as a reference to Nicki’s 2014 track, “Feeling Myself” (per HITC). Nicki’s “Super Freaky Girl” remix contained a new line when she rapped, “Tell that goofy, get a chair / she was cocky, I could swear / ‘Till my old tape sold more than your album / drop a tear.” This was taken as a reference to Nicki’s claims that her Beam Me Up Scotty mixtape sold more than Megan’s 2021 compilation, Something For Thee Hotties.
Also in 2022, Nicki went on Queen Radio to claim that an unnamed rapper told her to “go to the clinic” because Minaj opted not to drink during her pregnancy. Nicki’s claims came right after she put off questions about Megan, leading some Barbz to accuse her of telling Nicki to abort her child. “LIE,” said Megan, per XXL.
“Red Ruby Da Sleeze” marks Nick’s first solo release since 2022’s “Super Freaky Girl,” a reimagining of Rick James’ “Super Freak” that debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. It was, surprisingly, Nicki’s first solo No. 1 hit, having reached the top on 6ix9ine’s “Trollz.” Her other hits – “Super Bass,” “Anaconda,” “Bang Bang,” “Chun-Li,” etc. – came close but never No. 1. “You did it barbz,” Minaj thanked fans on social media after the track went No. 1. “You did it. I love you so much. like so so SO much. Thank you.”
“Super Freaky Girl” was released as part of Queen Radio: Volume 1, Nicki’s first greatest hits compilation. The album debuted at No. 10 on the Billboard 200. With “Super Freaky Girl’s success, Nicki became the first female hip-hop artist to debut at No. 1 – with no features or accompanying acts – since Lauryn Hill’s 1998 hit, “Doo Wop (That Thing),” per Billboard.
Fans first got the taste of “Red Ruby Da Sleeze” on Feb. 26, when Nicki announced the single, along with the single’s artwork featuring her in a Jean Paul Gaultier dress and St. Laurent shoes as she stands in the kitchen of Passage To Asa On The Avenue in Trinidad & Tobago. Nicki also shared a behind-the-scenes look at the video, featuring a track snippet. The Christopher Reeves line was included in the preview, which immediately got fans buzzing about possible Megan shade.