A Texas cemetery has taken steps to beef up its security efforts after a public dispute between rappers Megan Thee Stallion and Nicki Minaj generated an influx of attention on social media.
The address of the cemetery. circulated on social networks Earlier this week, some users linked it to the final resting place of Holly Thomas, Megan Thee Stallion's mother. In a statement, the cemetery (The Times will not reveal her name) said she had alerted local police officers and had “increased the number of victims.” [its] security personnel.”
“We will continue to monitor the situation as we take security very seriously,” the statement continued.
A representative from a local police department confirmed to The Times that more patrol officers have been ordered to conduct “additional security checks” around the cemetery since Sunday. As of Wednesday afternoon, no vandalism had been reported at the grave.
The March 2019 death of Megan Thee Stallion's mother, who died after battling brain cancer, and her final resting place emerged amid tension between the Houston-raised “Hiss” rapper and Minaj. Last week, Megan and Minaj (who collaborated on the 2019 song “Hot Girl Summer”) released tracks that seemingly dissed each other.
After Megan Thee Stallion (real name Megan Pete) released “Hiss” on Friday, fans speculated that the Grammy winner, 28, was taking aim at Minaj and her husband with lyrics referencing Megan's Law.
The “Hiss” lyrics in question: “These h… don't be mad at Megan, these h… mad at Megan's Law.”
Federal law requires public disclosure of convicted and registered sex offenders, and Minaj's husband, Kenneth Petty, was convicted in 1995 in New York for the attempted rape of a 16-year-old girl.
He served a four-year prison sentence for that conviction and must register as a sex offender wherever he lives. But in 2022, Petty failed to register in California as a sex offender and was sentenced to house arrest.
“Hiss” did not mention Minaj by name, but the “Pink Friday 2” rapper seemed to take the single personally and released her own song.
Minaj's “Big Foot” nods to more than just Megan Thee Stallion's romantic relationships and her 2020 shoot by Tory Lanez. In several lines, Minaj accuses her alleged rival of “lying about your dead mom.” The rapper, 41, also reportedly mentioned Thomas' death on the “social radio” platform Stationhead, TMZ reported.
As of Wednesday afternoon, it appears Thomas wasn't the only deceased father caught up in the rappers' feud. The final resting place of Robert Maraj (Minaj's father), who died in February 2021, also began circulating on social media.
Neither representatives for Megan Thee Stallion nor Minaj responded to the Times' request for comment.
With rap fans allegedly using graves to fuel a dispute, a Houston-area police representative told the Times that would-be vandals should be prepared to face consequences.
“There are laws against defacing and damaging graves and anyone caught in any act… will obviously face the consequences of being arrested,” a police source said. “We strongly advise everyone to stay away from the cemetery and not get involved in something like this.”
