Nicki Minaj defended Jesy Nelson after Nelson was accused of “blackfishing” in her music video with Minaj, “Boyz.” Nelson was a former member of the popular British girl group Little Mix before parting ways in late 2020.
Nelson released her debut single just last week, but many people are upset about Nelson’s attempt to look like a black or mixed race woman in the music video and profiting from black culture.
In the video, Nelson is heavily tanned and her hair is styled with wigs and braids. She wears basketball shorts and gold teeth and sings about wanting a boy who’s “so hood, so good, so damn taboo.”
All three of Nelson’s ex-bandmates Perrie Edwards, Jade Thirwall, and Leigh-Anne Pinnock have unfollowed her on social media since the controversy, and there was allegedly a fake screenshot of Pinnock calling Nelson out on blackfishing.
Minaj and Nelson went live on Instagram to promote the single on Monday, and during the livestream, Minaj called Pinnock a “clown” and said Little Mix members were only “calling her out to help their “personal vendetta” against her.
She said, “Don’t wait a decade after you’ve made millions with the person.” Nelson admitted that Pinnock has talked to her about the issue before, however, Minaj defended her by saying, “There’s a lot of women out here in the United States that tan, get bigger lips. I wear straight blonde hair when I want to.”
In a recent interview with Vulture, Nelson responded to her blackfishing accusations by saying, “I’m very aware that I’m a white British woman; I’ve never said that I wasn’t. My intention is never to offend people of colour with this video and my song.”
The members of Little Mix have not responded to Nelson and Minaj’s comments. Minaj has been in a few controversies lately, her husband Kenneth Petty was accused of rape and the victim Jennifer Hough said Minaj and her husband were harassing her to drop the lawsuit.
