It’s been seven years since Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj’s hit collab “Bang Bang” came out, but it appears they’ve only recently sorted out how the song actually came together.
Last week, 33-year-old singer reflected on having both Ari and Nicki on the track during her interview with Glamour, recalling the song’s beginnings.
“Max Martin wrote ‘Bang Bang,’ and Ariana had been played it, I’d been played it, and we both loved it,” Jessie J said. “We just said, ‘Why don’t we both do it?’ So Ariana stayed on the second verse, I recorded the first verse, and then Nicki was played it in the studio and was like, ‘I’ve got to jump on this.’ We didn’t go to her and ask; she wanted to do it.”
However, Nicki says that’s not how she remembers it going down.
“Babe @JessieJ I didn’t hear the song & ask 2get on it. The label asked me2get on it & paid me,” Nicki tweeted with her version of the events. “How would I have heard the song? 😩 chiiille what am I the damn song monitor? Snoopin around for songs chile?😂This was said by another artist recently as well. Yallgotta stop🎈 LoveU😘”
Nicki later appeared to dispel any speculations of drama, revealing she’d actually been down to work with Jessie – but on another track.
“Chi😂😂😂 but the worst part about this is no1EVER asked me2get on “like a dude” & I have been obsessed w|that song since the min I heard it,” she wrote in a follow-up tweet. “I was doing promo in the UK & heard it on the radio. My artist Parker co wrote it. I would’ve gotten on that 1 for some pickle juice 🥺”
Jessie went on Instagram on Friday (August 6) to respond to Nicki – and share a slideshow of memes of her and her supposed beef with Nicki.
“I respect you publicly being yourself @nickiminaj • So here I am being myself,” she began in the caption.
She then went on to talk about the first clip in the slideshow, which was taken from a 2015 performance of “Bang Bang” where Jessie could be seen doing a lip syncing fail of Nicki’s verse on stage – some fans have mused that it could be a reason for the rumored bad blood between the two artists.
“This is a video of me back in 2015 on stage taking the piss out of myself which is basically an hour of my set,” Jessie J wrote. “It was made into a meme about 2 weeks ago. Is that what this is really about? And where this weird energy between us began?… If we can’t laugh in the lives we have been blessed with. What’s the point. It really isn’t that deep.”
Explaining it was all a misunderstanding, Jessie continued, “From the moment I met you to now I have shown you nothing but love and gratitude for how f—ing blessed I was to have you and @arianagrande who btw wrote Bang Bang with the insanely talented Max Martin which I found out today. Jesus. What a day. Sorry Ari. I never knew. Wild.”
“I’m the first person to admit Bang Bang would NEVER have been what it was without you guys,” she added. “I’m sorry I got the story wrong all these years, I was told you heard the song and wanted to be on it by someone clearly gassing me up at the label. (Bless them and my naive a–). Thank you for clarifying I was wrong on that.”
“What a way for us to celebrate the 7 year anniversary of the song. 😩😂,” Jessie went on. “Should we all go for dinner? No… Probably not right.. Too soon? Bang bang part two?… No…. Ok got it… Look, the song did it’s damn thing. I will never say you asked to be on the song ever again.”
“Always love and light from me babes,” she concluded her message.
