Stephen A. Smith ripped into raptress Nicki Minaj for going off on Jay-Z after he selected Kendrick Lamar as the featured halftime performer at the 2025 Super Bowl in New Orleans.
Minaj, 41, unleashed a torrent of profanities and insults at Jay-Z, whom she accuses of snubbing her fellow Cash Money/Young Money icon Lil Wayne. She, along with Crescent City native Master P, felt Wayne was the natural choice to represent NOLA at America’s biggest sporting event in his hometown [though Master P employed softer language to express his disappointment].
Stephen A. Smith accuses Nicki Minaj of behaving inappropriately
Smith took issue with how Minaj addressed Jay-Z, which Smith characterized as blatantly disrespectful.
“Every time we turn around it’s something, Nicki,” Smith railed. “You disagree with the decision … but you have to talk to a brother like that?”
Stephen A. Smith tells Nicki Minaj that Jay-Z should be given props
Minaj claims Hov values money over culture, which Smith emphatically disputes.
Smith said Jay-Z should be credited for getting more R&B and hip-hop stars performing at the Super Bowl Halftime Show than ever before.
“Do you know how hard it is for a Black man to pull off what JAY-Z has pulled off?” Smith asked rhetorically. “How unappreciative can you be?
After steering the podcast in a different direction for a spell, Smith redirected the conversation back to Minaj and the Super Bowl. He enumerated the long list of artists Minaj has had beef with during her long career. Moreover, Smith accused Minaj of exploiting this controversy to generate interest in her career instead of standing on business and supporting Lil Wayne.
“It ain’t about you as an individual; it’s about us,” he asserted. “It’s about all of us, as Black people. And that brother [Jay-Z] has been front and center in pushing the envelope.
“You don’t call him a sellout. You don’t use the N-word to describe him. What’s up with that? What the hell is that?”
