What happened between Ethel Cain and Lana Del Rey? Nicki Minaj comments on their beef claiming she's singing Del Rey's track "all morning"

Rapper Nicki Minaj shared her thoughts on Lana Del Rey and Ethel Cain's ongoing feud on the internet. Minaj claimed she cannot take Del Rey's latest snippet out of her mind, referring to everything she said as "dope."

The feud between Ethel Cain and Lana Del Rey began when the latter shared a song snippet on Instagram that mentioned Cain. Del Rey took shots at her while referring to Cain seemingly copying her pose in her photo with Salem's Jack Donoghue.

In a series of X posts on August 15, 2025, Nicki Minaj mentioned that she cannot get Lana Del Rey's song snippet out of her head. The latter shared the snippet on her Instagram, aiming a diss at Ethel Cain and name-dropping her. She wrote:

"I’ve been singing “Ethel cain hated my instagram post” all morning. Help!!!!! And something about the Waffle House & a picture w/some boy?"

In a follow-up post, Minaj recalled a time when Lana Del Rey "dissed all the girlies" and no one knew why. She continued:

"Remember that time Lana dissed all the girlies but we had no idea why but none of us said anything back? Lmaooooo not we let Lana walk in the lunchroom & run EVERYBODY pockets wit no weapon & no gang & said not one thing about it. Lmfaooooo. AYO🤣 I f*ng love this sh*t yo."

In another post, Minaj wrote:

"And there ya have it. Lana has me singing about a person named Ethel Cain due to this DOPE melody, vocal & instrumentation. It just made me think how many times ppl were probably PROUDLY rapping someone’s name in one of my songs & had no clue who or what I was talking about 😩"

Lana Del Rey's latest snippet on Instagram takes shots at Ethel Cain

Rock En Seine Festival At Domaine National De Saint Cloud - Day One - Source: Getty

On August 13, Lana Del Rey shared a short snippet of her unreleased Track 13 on Instagram, which featured a reference to singer Ethel Cain. The lyrics in the reel said:

"Ethel Cain hated my Instagram post, reenacting my Chicago pose."

Del Rey also referred to a New York Times headline from 2022, in which Cain was described as "the most famous girl in the waffle house." Fans have speculated that Del Rey's lyrics refer to Cain's supposed friendship with the singer's ex, Salem musician Jack Donoghue.

In 2022, both Lana Del Rey and Ethel Cain shared images while posing with Donoghue, which seemingly formed the basis for the diss track. Del Rey's post featured her and Donoghue posing in front of a Chicago prison. Fans related her reference to "reenacting my Chicago pose" as a dig at Cain for seemingly copying the pose after she shared an image of them standing together similarly.

Del Rey further elaborated on her alleged beef with Ethel Cain in the comment section of one of Pop Base's Instagram posts. She wrote:

"I didn’t know who Ethel was until a few years ago — when someone brought to my attention the disturbing and graphic side-by-side images she would often put up of me next to unflattering creatures and cartoon characters making constant comments about my weight, I was confused at what she was getting at."

She continued:

"Then when I heard what she was saying behind closed doors from mutual friends and started inserting herself into my personal life I was definitely disturbed."

It remains unclear which posts Del Rey was referring to, as there are no confirmed public posts available that suggest they came from Cain. Meanwhile, she responded to Lana Del Rey's snippet through an Instagram story soon after, claiming she is blocked by the singer on the platform.

Since the feud began, artists such as Nicki Minaj and Azealia Banks have commented on the feud. It remains to be seen if Cain responds through another snippet or the feud continues hereafter.

About the author

Pratyasha is a Pop Culture and a European Football writer for Sportskeeda. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature, and has over 3 years of experience in the pop culture industry. Throughout her career, Pratyasha has always emphasized detailed background checks, and believes in verifying all information regardless of how correct it may seem.

Pratyasha is an ardent admirer of Lionel Messi and has followed his journey since she was a kid; he inspires her with his dedication and humility. She has grown up watching, living, and breathing Satyajit Ray's cinema, which she believes is timeless. She loves Taylor Swift’s music and thinks she's a lyrical genius, and also admires Shah Rukh Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, and Deepika Padukone.

When Pratyasha's off the clock, she enjoys reading books and listening to music. During the football season, she is usually busy watching football matches late at night when Barcelona are playing.

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Edited by Maithreyi S