Remy Ma is revisiting one of the most explosive rivalries of her career while opening a completely different chapter in her personal life.
The Bronx rapper released her new six-song “Alimony” EP on Friday, September 25, with much of the project centered around relationships, marriage, and the highly publicized breakdown of her longtime marriage to Papoose. However, Remy also slipped in a surprising reference to Nicki Minaj, reopening conversation about a rap feud that stretches back nearly two decades.
On the opening track, “Rem The Pen,” Remy gives recognition to several women in rap, including Cardi B and Lil’ Kim, before acknowledging the reality of where things apparently stand between her and Nicki.
“Me and Nicki will probably never speak again / But even that b***h told y’all I got a pen.”
The bar does not necessarily restart their feud, but it makes clear that Remy has not forgotten their history. It also gives Nicki credit for acknowledging Remy’s ability as a writer despite everything that unfolded between them.
Their complicated relationship can be traced back to 2007, years before “ShETHER” became one of the most talked-about diss records of its era.
Nicki was still building her name when she released her “Playtime Is Over” mixtape. On the freestyle commonly referred to as “Dirty Money,” Nicki made a reference to a woman wearing the rap crown. Remy, who had already established herself through Terror Squad and songs such as “Lean Back,” believed the lyrics may have been aimed at her and later recalled confronting Nicki about them at a mixtape release party.
Their relationship was not always openly hostile.
After Remy was released from prison in 2014 following roughly six years behind bars, she publicly praised Nicki’s success. At the time, Remy described Nicki positively and pushed back against the idea that two successful women in rap automatically needed to attack each other. Nicki had become a global superstar during the years Remy was incarcerated, drastically changing the balance between the two New York rappers.
Things eventually deteriorated.
Throughout 2015 and 2016, rap fans began dissecting verses from both women and questioning whether subliminal shots were being exchanged. By early 2017, there was little room left for speculation.
Nicki appeared on Gucci Mane’s “Make Love” and Jason Derulo’s “Swalla,” delivering lines that many listeners believed were targeting Remy. Days later, Remy responded in dramatic fashion with “ShETHER,” a lengthy diss track built over the instrumental from Nas’ legendary Jay-Z diss “Ether.”
“ShETHER” turned their simmering tension into an unmistakable rap war.
Remy attacked Nicki’s career, appearance, relationships, and credibility on the record. She followed it with another diss, “Another One,” while Nicki initially remained relatively quiet.
Nicki eventually fired back with “No Frauds,” featuring Drake and Lil Wayne, in March 2017. Rather than releasing a traditional solo diss track, Nicki answered Remy through a commercial single while taking shots at her career, prison history, and “ShETHER” follow-up.
The feud continued throughout that year.
Remy performed “ShETHER” during Hot 97’s Summer Jam while images of Nicki appeared behind her, and she brought several women in hip-hop onstage during the performance. Later that month, Remy won Best Female Hip Hop Artist at the BET Awards, breaking Nicki’s seven-year winning streak in the category. Nicki subsequently performed “No Frauds” and other records containing Remy references during her own appearances.
Over time, however, the direct attacks slowed.
Neither rapper publicly announced a reconciliation, and Remy’s new lyric suggests one may never happen. Still, the 2026 mention sounds more reflective than the scorched-earth battle that dominated hip-hop discussions in 2017.
Remy’s bigger focus now appears to be “Alimony.”
“I wanted this project to feel like a conversation between women,” she stated. “We’ve all had those moments where you call your girls, look at yourself in the mirror, and say, ‘Girl, what are we doing?’ Sometimes you laugh, sometimes you learn, but you keep moving. Music has always been a place where I can express myself, and right now I’m really enjoying creating again. I want women to hear this, have fun with it, and see a little bit of themselves in it.”
The project arrives as Remy and Papoose continue navigating their public divorce, with both rappers increasingly using music and social media to address their fractured relationship. Remy has also released a video for “Why I Get Married?” featuring Keke Wyatt.
Although much of the attention surrounding “Alimony” will likely remain centered on Papoose, Remy’s brief Nicki reference shows that another major chapter of her life has not been completely erased.
Nearly 20 years after questions first surfaced about tension between them, Remy appears convinced that she and Nicki may never repair their relationship. Still, even while acknowledging that distance, she managed to turn their rivalry into something resembling a compliment: whatever else happened between them, Remy believes Nicki has already recognized that she can write.
