Nicki Minaj just called Miley Cyrus a 'bitch' at the VMAs. Here's why

Nicki Minaj just won the VMAs.

She stood up on stage to collect her Best Hip-Hop Music Video award forAnaconda and insulted the host, Miley Cyrus.

In the middle of her acceptance speech, Minaj said: “And now back to this bitch who had a lot to say about me the other day in the press. Miley, what’s good?”

Minaj was referencing a debate that took over Twitter last month, when she and Taylor Swift had a spat over the VMA nominations.

It all started when Minaj spoke out over not getting a nomination for overall ‘best music video’ - something she attributed to not being white or slim.

Swift – who had been nominated – asked Minaj why she was pitting women against each other.

Cue a heated internet discussion over Swift’s ‘privileged white feminism’ and Minaj being stereotyped as ‘an angry black woman.’

Nicki Minaj and Taylor Swift  Photo: Rex/Getty Images

Swift eventually apologised, but the feud carried on when Miley Cyrus was asked about it, and told the New York Times: “Nicki Minaj is not too kind.”

She went on to say that Minaj’s Twitter comments were “not very polite”, adding: “I think there’s a way you speak to people with openness and love. You don’t have to start this pop star against pop star war.

“I know you can make it seem like, 'Oh I just don’t understand because I’m a white pop star'. I know the statistics. I know what’s going on in the world. But to be honest, I don’t think MTV did that on purpose."

These are the comments Minaj was referring to her at the VMAs when she called Cyrus a 'bitch'.

Cyrus awkwardly responded: “We're both in this industry, we both do interviews, we know how they manipulate s---”.

Minaj’s microphone, meanwhile, was switched off on stage.

Miley Cyrus at the VMAs  Photo: AP

The whole scene made for great TV, but it’s also been applauded all over social media. Fans are praising Minaj for standing up for herself in a predominantly white industry.

One woman wrote: "Black women especially are expected to shoulder any and all abuse silently. She refused."

Others spoke out in favour of Minaj's bold move - and though some questioned whether it was staged.

No wonder that she won the unofficial title of 'VMAs queen'.