10 Most Shocking Pop Feuds Of The Past 5 Years

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8. Nicki Minaj vs. Taylor Swift

While their feud may have been laid to rest at the VMAs, these two were heinous rivals this year over the award ceremonies nomination list. Swift led with seven nominations while Minaj was honored with two for best female and best hip hop video. It wasn’t long before Nicki’s Twitter lit up with a series of tweets demonstrating the hip-hop artist’s dismay over the lack of non-white female faces on the list.  She also added “If your video celebrates women with very slim bodies, you will be nominated for vid of the year.” Taylor responded despite not being named directly in any of Minaj’s tweets: “@nickiminaj I’ve done nothing but love & support you. It’s unlike you to pit women against each other. Maybe one of the men took your slot…” The two surprised fans by performing together at the award show, Swift singing along with Minaj to “The Night is Still Young” before breaking into a verse of “Bad Blood.”

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6. Jay Z vs. Solange Knowles

This feud contains some mystery and is full of speculation. In an elevator in a fancy hotel, The Standard in New York, Solange Knowles, sister of Beyonce, physically attacked Jay Z after NYs Costume Met Gala, while Queen B stood by. The incident sparked much speculation as to the reason for the attack, including the rumor that Jay Z was cheating with Rihanna. In a bizarre tune, a remix of “Flawless,” Beyonce and Nicki Minaj sing about the incident. “Of course sometimes sh*t goes down when there’s a billion dollars on an elevator,” chalking the cause up to having too much money. I can help them with that!

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5. Ciara vs. Rihanna

Ciara started this spat when she claimed on Fashion Police that Rihanna had dismissed her when they met at a party. “She wasn’t the nicest,” Ciara said of RiRi, describing the run-in as less than pleasant. Rihanna responded via Twitter of course saying, “My bad ci, did I 4get to tip u?” Wow…catty! After a series of exchanges in which Ciara physically threatened Rihanna, “Trust me Rihanna you don’t want to see me on or off the stage,” the two made peace. Rihanna said that her feelings were hurt on TV, so she retaliated, and Ciara said that she loves her and they should chat in person. How sweet.

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4. Drake vs. Chris Brown

Even though these two previously declared an end to their spat, appearing together in a skit for the 2014 ESPY Awards, harrowing battles never truly die. Chris Brown was sure to keep the feud alive in a series of radio shows in which he publicly dissed the Canadian rapper. While on the Breakfast Club, Brown commented on a picture of him and Drake saying, “That dude don’t make me no check.  I didn’t make no record with him. He was just in the studio. He was a fan.” He also brought up his violent breakup from Rihanna and responded to rumors of her post-relationship relationship with Drake: “With old girl—the first one—who else is she gonna go to? Who else in this game she gonna go to? Some corny singing rapper?” He went on to attribute “Drizzy’s” fame to himself. We’re on Team Drake for this one. 

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2. Katy Perry vs. Taylor Swift

Oh T-Swift…we meet again. But this time, I would say you’ve met a worthy adversary. So apparently, this feud can be traced back to what’s-his-name Mayer that they both dated (you know…the whole sharing a boyfriend thing), as well as some hijacked dancers from Swift’s tour by Perry. But it’s the rumors of “Bad Blood” being written about Perry that has people talking. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Swift stated that “Bad Blood” is about a conflict with a famous artist and that they are “straight-up enemies” supposedly over business handlings. Katy’s not-so-subtle interjection in the Swift-Minaj tweet-a-thon, showed whose side she was on: “Finding it ironic to parade the pit women against other women argument about as one unmeasurably capitalizes on the take down of a woman.” Meow!

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1. Kanye West vs. Taylor Swift

Okay, so maybe a bunch of gun-slinging rappers sounds a like a more intense feud, but this one tops the chart due to the repetitive appearance of its key players. This feud has it all, public humiliation, a media storm backlash, and retaliation. We all remember Kanye’s unwelcomed 2009 leap to the stage to announce his opinion that Beyonce should have won the VMA for Best Female Video, ripping the microphone from T-Swift who later said, “I was standing onstage, and I was really excited because I’d just won the award, and then I was really excited because Kanye West was onstage. And then I wasn’t excited anymore after that.” That’s because you got “Kanyed.” The media was furious with Kanye for what he had done to the (seemingly) innocent Swift, but she got her revenge. In her appearance on Saturday Night Live, the young artist was the first to write her own monologue—a song called “La la la,” in which she confesses her enjoyment of writing ex-boyfriends into songs to embarrass them, and pokes fun at the need to have security around when Kanye is present. We know Kanye didn’t learn from this experience, but that’s because, in case he hasn’t told you yet, he’s God.

Jessica Bowden