10 Music Industry Beefs That Got Way Too Personal

#10: Madonna & Elton John

Although its more of a one-sided feud, this one got awfully mean awfully fast. Elton John made several comments about Madonna throughout the years, starting with his dig at her James Bond theme, Die Another Day. Every few years, John would emerge like a shade monster awakening from hibernation to accuse her of lip-syncing, going after Lady Gaga, and looking like, quote, a fairground stripper. He would preface this by saying hes a fan. Madonna, in response, kept it classy by thanking him for being a fan. As of 2025, the two have made amends since John asked for forgiveness.

#9: Zayn Malik & One Direction

First assembled on The X Factor, One Direction was still immensely popular when they began to fracture. Zayn Malik abruptly quit the group in 2015. The story was that the separation was amicable. But fans watched sadly as the groups conflicts played out on social media. Maliks comments about the bands output particularly rubbed them the wrong way. Social media posts between him and bandmate Louis Tomlinson got tense in 2015, with Malik accusing Tomlinson of making harsh comments about his life. All seemed forgiven after the 2024 death of Liam Payne, when all four of his former bandmates gathered for his funeral.

#8: Axl Rose & Slash

Substance use and hard-partying sewed division within Guns N Roses from the outset. Then, artistic differences crept in when Slash crossed genre lines to be a session guitarist for pop superstar Michael Jackson. Rose felt this was at odds with the groups artistic direction, leading him to pull in the reins on the group. He even tried to get them to sign contracts giving him total control. Slash would later say that one of the last straws was Rose bringing in another guitarist to play on their cover of the Rolling Stones Sympathy for the Devil. It felt like the ultimate betrayal. The two bad-mouthed each other in the press for years before reuniting in 2015.

#7: Noel Gallagher & Liam Gallagher

Co-founding the British rock band Oasis, the Gallagher brothers have made headlines for years over their fraught relationship. Their fights became so well-publicized that they actually released one of their arguments as a two-sided record. But it wasnt all fun and games. The feud got physical more than once. The beef continued even as the band continued its run into the 2000s, becoming a marketable part of their image. The band ultimately broke up in 2009 when the Gallaghers got into another brawl backstage. Noel left the tour and the group as a result. Though Oasis got back together for a reunion tour in 2025, the brothers' decades-long history of trading quips in the media loomed large in everyone's minds.

#6: Ice Cube & N.W.A

This one cut deep for a lot of reasons. It wasnt just a standard professional rivalry. Ice Cube was once a member of NWA, along with original members Dr. Dre and the late Eazy-E. Disputes over earnings and songwriting credit led to Ice Cube departing the group in 1989 at the very height of their stardom. The bad blood was immediate, and so were the diss tracks. The culmination of their war of words is probably Ice Cubes scathing No Vaseline. Dr. Dre and Ice Cube eventually reconciled after the death of Eazy-E in 1994. Theyve since collaborated again, including on the 2015 biopic Straight Outta Compton.

#5: Nas & Jay-Z

You know the beef is bad when somebodys mom has to step in. Jay-Z and Nas beef was a professional competition that got out of hand. Throughout the late 90s and early 2000s, the rappers engaged in a back-and-forth of referencing each other in increasingly insulting lyrics. Nas Ether is still considered a legendary diss track. But Jay-Zs response made things really personal. On Super Ugly, Jay-Z didnt just take issue with Nas, but also dragged Carmen Bryan, his own one-time lover and Nas childs mother, into the feud. Jay-Zs mom, Gloria Carter, told him he needed to apologize to Nas and Nas entire family for that one. Luckily, theyve since patched things up.

#4: Kanye West & Taylor Swift

No ones getting excused from this narrative. In 2009, Kanye West created a huge splash when he interrupted Taylor Swifts VMA acceptance speech and declared Beyoncé the real winner. Things just spiraled from there. Even President Obama weighed in, calling West a jackass. Despite some reconciliations over the years, West continued to mention Swift in his music while Swift kept her references a bit more subtle. His controversial video for the track Famous, which includes a nude Swift lookalike, became another sticking point. Swifts knowledge of the songs content became the topic of controversy involving West and then-wife Kim Kardashian. Wests political extremism and public antics have reignited the feud, with Swift filing a lawsuit against him as recently as 2025.

#3: Megan Thee Stallion & Nicki Minaj

Shes had beef with Mariah Carey and Lil Kim . Things even got physical with Cardi B at New York Fashion Week. But Nicki Minajs clash with former collaborator Megan Thee Stallion was the most vicious. Although their beef had been brewing as early as 2021, it became inflamed by Megans mention of Megans Law in her track Hiss. This was seen as a dig at Minaj, as her husband and brother are both registered sex offenders. Minaj launched a war, making social media videos about Megan and referencing the recent death of her rivals mother. Minajs response track, Big Foot, also publicly mocked Megans shooting in 2020. The single was not as critically acclaimed, but fans are still taking sides.

#2: Drake & Kendrick Lamar

Although this beef exploded in 2024, it was years in the making. It was originally a diss track war involving Drake, Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole, who had the good sense to bow out before things got heated. Things took a turn when Drake dropped Family Matters. The song sees him questioning the paternity of Lamars son and accusing him of abuse. This led to an all-out nuclear war, with Lamar dropping some of the most damning, incendiary, and hilariously catchy diss tracks that had the whole world rapping along. The end result: Lamar won five Grammys and headlined the Super Bowl Halftime Show, and Drake filed a lawsuit.

#1: The Notorious B.I.G. & Tupac Shakur

In 1994, rapper and actor Tupac Shakur was the victim of a robbery and shooting. He accused Christopher Wallace, known by his stage names Notorious B.I.G. and Biggie Smalls, of having known about the attack beforehand. Wallaces song Who Shot Ya? was interpreted as a diss track about the incident. The feud came to a tragic end when both Shakur and Wallace were murdered in separate drive-by shootings within six months of each other. Their deaths are believed to be a major catalyst for the end of the East Coast-West Coast hip-hop rivalry. Despite at least one arrest and the identification of several murderers, the lives and deaths of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls still spark curiosity nearly 30 years later.

Did any of these beefs shock you? Let us know in the comments.