Cardi B has never been one to hold her tongue, and her new track “Pretty & Petty,” off Am I The Drama?, proves she’s still willing to go toe-to-toe with anyone in hip-hop. The record, which dropped alongside her highly anticipated album, has sparked debate across social media for its pointed shots at Boston rapper BIA, delivering some of Cardi’s sharpest lyrical barbs in years.
From the start, Cardi sets the tone with a direct challenge to BIA’s recognition in rap culture. “Name five BIA songs, gun pointed to your head / Bow, I’m dead,” she raps, mocking her rival’s catalog before labeling it “melatonin flow,” a jab at its supposed lack of energy. She takes the critique further, claiming Epic Records is overspending on BIA and quipping, “I’m doing you a favor, Epic, run me my bread.”
The Bronx rapper doesn’t stop at questioning career credentials. Cardi leans into personal attacks, targeting BIA’s looks—“I’d rather die on the surgery table / ’Fore I gotta walk around here lookin’ like you”—and dismissing her industry status with, “Do she even got a BET award?” She even claims promoters book BIA only when they “can’t afford Coi,” a nod to Coi Leray’s rising profile.
Cardi B Disses BIA On “Pretty & Petty”
The disses get more layered as Cardi flips BIA’s background into wordplay. “You from Boston, let’s have a little tea party,” she sneers, while rebranding her nickname into “Diarrhea BIA.” She also raises allegations of dishonesty and questionable affiliations: “Why you always at Diddy house? … Tell these folks what it’s really about.”
Cardi strikes at identity too, criticizing BIA’s light-skinned privilege—“I hate when a bitch think she cute ’cause she light skin”—and closes the record with a Mean Girls reference, calling her “a Gretchen,” a side character to Cardi’s self-declared “icon” and “legend” status.
With “Pretty & Petty,” Cardi blends comedy, venom, and bravado into a diss track that does more than entertain—it reasserts her dominance. For BIA, the bars raise questions about her position in the rap landscape. For Cardi, it’s another reminder of her ability to command attention with both wit and bite.