Cardi B VS. BIA “Feud” Sparked By Fans Comparing Songs
If there’s one thing clear about Hip-Hop over the last few years, it is that fans will either create a beef between artists, or perpetuate an already existing one. Cardi B and BIA recently addressed the commentary surrounding the former’s new record “Like What (Freestyle).”
The track, which came out this past Friday (Mar. 1), samples Missy Elliott’s 1999 hit “She’s A Bi**h.” The Massachusetts rapper sampled the same song last year on “I’m That Bi**h” featuring Timbaland. While rappers drawing inspiration from and flipping the same records is far from uncommon — and yielded many hits over the last few decades — the Bronx rapper has been panned for the act.
The discourse was bolstered by the fact that the Grammy winner teased a new song at the end of the “Like What (Freestyle)” video which bears similarities to BIA’s 2023 track “Fallback.” An X (formerly Twitter) user shared snippets of both songs on Monday (Mar. 4), writing “But Bia is definitely on Cardi’s mood board a lot.”
BIA responded to the tweet with woozy face emojis, although it is unclear whether she was woozy toward Cardi B sampling the same song, or the fan for trying to conjure up beef. It is worth noting that she did like the original tweet, in addition to other tweets alluding to her ability to write raps and people trying to sound like her. One minute later, she tweeted “Yall are sick” with laughing emojis, which also wasn’t clear.
The Invasion Of Privacy artist rarely goes without a response. Hours after BIA’s tweets, Cardi tweeted “Bi**hes make a fool of themselves every single time *laughing emoji*.. ima show ya something when I release this song tho *winking emoji*.”
Again, it is unclear whether her thoughts were directed at the “London” artist, or the fans who accused her of being a copycat.
It is understandable for Cardi B to be defensive, given the events of the last few days. Upon releasing “Like What (Freestyle),” Ski Mask The Slump God quoted her tweet promoting the record and wrote, “Sounds Kinda Familiar.” He was referencing his 2017 song “Catch Me Outside,” which also bears similarities to “Like What (Freestyle).” Internet users rained down on Ski Mask for seemingly being possessive of a sample, which prompted him to tweet “I Like The Song Why Yall So Angry Lol” a little over ten minutes later.
Whether it’s the rappers catching feelings or the fans trying to spark feuds, everyone could benefit from not being so possessive over the art of sampling.
Now if Cardi B and BIA do have issues, “inspiration” would be an interesting catalyst for them, as BIA admitted to being inspired by the former Love & Hip Hop star. In 2021, Cardi’s breakthrough hit “Bodak Yellow” was certified diamond and BIA took to social media to show love. “If you’re not inspired you’re not paying attention,” she wrote. “You can at least be a fan of someone’s work ethic, growth, and contributions. & I’ve been writing for 10years, what she’s accomplished is NOT EASY.”