American Idol has had several combinations of judges over the years, but perhaps the wildest of them all was during Season 12. That season’s panel was made up of Randy Jackson, Keith Urban, Nicki Minaj, and Mariah Carey, and there was peak drama all season long.
The drama stemmed from tension between Minaj and Carey, and their past feud recently made headlines following Minaj’s public support of Donald Trump. Specifically, a 2016 clip of Carey on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen resurfaced, which featured host Andy Cohen asking her if she could say three nice things about Minaj.
“Can you?” Carey replied, with a smirk. When Cohen questioned whether she wanted to use her one “plead the fifth” to avoid answering the question, Carey said, “I always felt it was more important with that situation to not plead the fifth, but just stay above the fray. You don’t want to be déclassé, you just want to move it along.”
Scroll down for a refresher on Minaj’s American Idol tenure and a breakdown of this feud.
When was Nicki Minaj on American Idol?
Minaj was only on American Idol for one season. She sat alongside Carey, Jackson, and Urban for Season 12 in 2013. The auditions for the season filmed in the fall of 2012, but episodes did not begin airing until the new year.
The season ran from January 16, 2013, to May 16, 2013, with Candice Glover being named the winner during the live finale. Just two weeks after the finale, Minaj confirmed her departure from the singing competiion.
“Thank you American Idol for a life changing experience!” she wrote on X at the time. “Wouldn’t trade it for the world! Time to focus on the Music!!! Mmmuuuaahhh!!!” Carey and Jackson also left Idol after Season 12, and Urban was joined by Harry Connick Jr. and Jennifer Lopez for the final three seasons of the show’s tenure on Fox.
How much did Nicki Minaj make on American Idol?
Forbes reported in 2013 that Minaj earned $12 million to judge one season of American Idol. She landed at No. 10 on the list of the outlet’s highest-paid women in music in 2013.
Before Minaj signed her contract with the show, The Hollywood Reporter reported that she would be making $8 million, with an additional allowance for wardrobe, hair, and makeup.
What happened between Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey?
Minaj and Carey bickered throughout the season on Idol, beginning with the auditions. While the show was still filming in October 2012, TMZ published a leaked video of a major blowout fight between the women.
In the footage, Minaj said, per TMZ, “Say one more disrespectful thing to me, if you say one more disrespectful thing to me … off with your head!” and, “Every time you take a shot at me I’ma take it back, and if you gotta f**king problem then handle it. I told them, I’m not f**king putting up with your f**king highness over there.”
Carey responded by wondering, “Do I have a 3-year-old sitting around me?” and Minaj called her “boring as f**k.” The following day, Carey appeared on The View and alleged to Barbara Walters that Minaj threatened, “If I had a gun, I would shoot her,” during the argument.
Minaj responded by writing on X, “Hey yAll. Lets just say nicki said smthn about a gun. ppl will believe it cuz she’s a black rapper. Lmao. I’ll then hit up Barbara n milk it.. Ironically no camera or mic heard the gun comment tho. Lol @ the struggle. Not even the producers believed u. Say no to violence.”
When the audition aired at the end of January 2013, it was revealed that the debate began during contestant Summer Cunningham’s performance. Cunningham revealed that she was going for an R&B sound after previously trying country music. Jackson and Carey thought country was the right lane for the hopeful singer, but Minaj urged them not to pigeonhole her, sparking an argument. Minaj ended up getting up and storming off the set, but the full fight between her and Carey did not air.
Later that season, during the live shows, Carey and Minaj had another spat, during which Carey threw shade at the rapper for never having a No. 1 song on the Billboard 100 chart.
After both Minaj and Carey exited the show, the “Always Be My Baby” singer spoke about her experience on Idol in November 2013. While she didn’t reference Minaj by name, she said in a radio interview, “It was like going to work every day in hell with Satan.”
American Idol, Season 24, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC
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