Funkmaster Flex vs Nicki Minaj: Audio of Summer Jam Fight

by Emily Sutherlin | June 5, 2012 at 08:02 am

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At Hot 97's Summer Jam 2012, Funkmaster Flex was angry with Nicki Minaj for pulling out of the headliners of the hip hop festival and interviewed her about not showing up to perform.

At Summer Jam on Sunday, in front of thousands amassed at MetLife Stadium, Hot 97's Funkmaster Flex sounded pretty angry when he said this:

"Tune in to me tomorrow at 7 o'clock. I'm gonna ruin a career."

He growled into the mic and promised he wouldn't let the evening's little snafu slide. Namely, the fact that Nicki Minaj didn't show up for the annual hip-hop festival, despite being billed as one of its headliners.

But in an hour-plus recorded conversation broadcast tonight on Hot 97, Funkmaster Flex did not ruin a career. Instead, he interviewed Nicki Minaj.

The back-and-forth was both exhaustive, and, at times, exhausting.

"Me and this girl been on the phone arguing for an hour, and I'm gonna play it as is," he said, prefacing the broadcast. Minaj requested that the entire interview be shared, unedited.

A little background as to why Nicki Minaj didn't show up: Minaj's boss at Young Money Entertainment, rapper Lil Wayne, had gotten wind of a not-so-positive comment about a Minaj song from Hot 97 personality Peter Rosenberg shortly before Summer Jam. He suddenly mandated that no one from his label would be performing at the concert. In short order, he tweeted his decision to the world, then Minaj, and the special guests she planned for her set, including Lil Wayne, never appeared.

"This was not about 2,000 people in a building," Minaj told Flex. She was referring to the visible audience for Rosenberg's comments. In an off the cuff remark, he had panned Minaj's song "Starships" (second video below) as not being "real hip-hop" while hosting a smaller festival stage for up-and-coming acts.

Although 2,000 people may have been present at the pre-show event, many more listened via a live stream, Minaj pointed out, telling the DJ how she promoted the link on her website.

But Flex alluded to a preexisting tension between Young Money and Hot 97, which Minaj didn't deny.

"Maybe that wasn't the best time to make that comment," he said of Rosenberg, but added:

"It is his opinion and what hip-hop is built on is opinion."

"I have opinions about DJs and Hot 97," Minaj shot back. "Everyone is grown enough to keep their opinions to themselves."

"I am not a joke," Minaj stressed more than once, saying that she thought Rosenberg's criticism had the effect of making fans feel "inferior for their personal tastes in music."

"When you invite someone to your home you treat them with respect," she continued. "Wayne gave me a very, very valuable lesson last night on knowing my worth."

Minaj said the offense was even more egregious because she was the only female artist on the bill. Lauren Hill took the stage that night, but only as a surprise guest. Flex rejected the the notion that Rosenberg criticized her music because she's a woman, though Minaj said she wasn't trying to make that claim.

"If you don't like me, don't book me," she said.

You can listen to the entire, unedited interview below.