Nicki Minaj’s fans were sent into a whirlwind of celebration and confusion Sunday night when the official Grammys Twitter and official website tweeted – and promptly deleted – an announcement declaring Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice as winners in rap category, which clearly didn’t happen during the award show ceremony. This bizarre turn of events ignited conspiracy theories, with many questioning whether it was a mere technical glitch or something more deliberate.

The pre-show for the 66th Grammys at LA’s Crypto.com Arena started smoothly with early award reveals. But things got messy when the Academy prematurely announced Nicki Minaj & Ice Spice’s Barbie World as the Best Rap Song winner. Oops! They quickly deleted the tweet and clarified that Killer Mike’s Scientists & Engineers actually took the prize.

Despite critical acclaim and commercial success, Nicki Minaj has never won a Grammy Award in a major category. She has received 12 nominations so far but has often been overlooked. First in 2020 for her album Queen and then In 2022, she publicly voiced her frustration with the show’s decision to remove her successful song Super Freaky Girl from the rap category to the pop one. Earlier she said, “It was done to decrease my chances of winning awards for ‘Super Freaky Girl.’ It was done to remove me from the category that they don’t want COMPETITION in!!!!!!! They are all scared to death of the success of that song”

While it’s possible that the incident could be attributed to a technical glitch, it has undeniably stirred frustration and confusion among fans. Additionally, a segment of internet users has put forth the intriguing theory that the Recording Academy intentionally planned the move to playfully taunt Nicki Minaj and her ongoing Grammy drought.