Ethel Cain and Lana Del Rey’s alleged beef is undoubtedly The Feud of the Year for girls, gays, and theys. (Queue the “I need to talk to a gay person right now” TikTok audio.) Considering Ethel and Lana are both sad girls who comment on American ideals and appear on all the same depressing-as-fuck playlists, you’d think they’d be besties. And I fear you’d be very, very wrong about that. Ever since Lana teased a snippet of an alleged Ethel diss track last week, the hard-working internet detectives out there have been piecing together what went down between these two. Upon conducting some serious research, I’ve learned that the complex feud seems to involve the Waffle House, Chicago, interviews, politics, and… Nicki Minaj (sort of). So, are Ethel Cain and Lana Del Rey actually feuding? And why on earth is Nicki Minaj tweeting about it? Here’s the thorough Lana Del Rey x Ethel Cain beef breakdown you’ve been waiting for.

Ethel Cain And Lana Del Rey Feud Breakdown

What Happened Between Ethel Cain And Lana Del Rey?

Lana alerted us all to this feud when she posted her diss track snippet on August 13. On Instagram, she shared a video of herself in a car, listening to a snippet of an unreleased track. In her caption, she tagged Jack Antonoff and called the song “Track 13.” The lyrics are quite interesting. “Ethel Cain hated my Instagram post / Think it’s cute reenacting my Chicago pose,” Lana croons. Later in the snippet, she also refers to “the most famous girl at the Waffle House.”

You may or may not recall that a 2022 New York Times profile on Ethel was titled “The Most Famous Girl at the Waffle House,” so that’s a pretty on-the-nose Ethel reference. Some fans also think the “Chicago pose” part alludes to a since-deleted photo Ethel posted with Salem member Jack Donoghue and how it’s kind of similar to a 2022 photo Lana took with him.

In a since-deleted comment on a Pop Base post about “Track 13,” Lana offered some insight into the lyrics. “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,” she wrote. “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.” Oof.

And yes, Ethel’s responded to the diss. The day Lana shared the snippet, Ethel posted an IG Story with the caption, “Update: Lana Del Rey has blocked Ethel Cain on Instagram.”

Although there’s lots of evidence that Ethel used to be a huge Lana fan, she’s pointedly distanced herself from the “Born to Die” singer in recent years. During a 2021 interview with Hero Magazine, she spoke about her and Lana’s different values. “I love Lana, I love her older music,” Ethel said. “Her newer stuff doesn’t really resonate with me, but I’d be a liar to say I never loved Lana.”

Ethel continued, “But here’s the line between Lana and me. Lana is all façade; she is glamour, she is old Hollywood, she is the peak opulence of the American Dream.” The singer noted that “that’s just not what America is to me,” adding, “I think America is the bottom line — it’s the poor people, the people who have been the most affected by the government, by the system. People who are constantly spat on.”

How Is Nicki Minaj Involved In The Ethel Cain And Lana Del Rey Feud?

Then, Nicki randomly joined in on the feud (because of course). On August 15, she tweeted, “I’ve been singing ‘Ethel Cain hated my Instagram post’ all morning. Help!!!!! And something about the Waffle House & a picture w/some boy?” She praised Lana’s vocals and production, joking that the song was “so good” that she became fully invested in the drama.

“I’m walking around all day talking about a person named Ethel who I do not know hating an Instagram post I never even posted? HELP MEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!” Nicki’s tweet continued. “I’m sure Ethel is a nice person. *hums the melody again & drifts off into this somber state whilst looking off into the horizon.”

But apparently, Nick’s not an Ethel hater because she found a 2023 post showing Ethel with a Barb flag. “Wtf? Is this real?” the rapper tweeted. “Thank you, Ethel.” But alas, that video wasn’t enough to change her opinion about Track 13, because she went right back to gushing over Lana’s “DOPE melody, vocal & instrumentation.”

Stay tuned for more of Nicki’s opinions on Lana v. Ethel.