Ice Spice vs. Cleotrapa Feud, Explained: A Clash of Friendship & Fame

The feud between New York rappers and former friends, Ice Spice and Cleotrapa, has recently set the Internet ablaze. The back-and-forth drama the artists have engaged in — very publicly — highlights the changing landscape of hip-hop feuds, where social media now takes center stage. It all started with a six-part video series Cleotrapa shared last week on TikTok, airing out her grievances against Ice Spice and detailing the dissolution of their friendship. 

The rivalry between Ice Spice and Cleo is just the latest example in a long history of rap beefs. While many people believe that rap beefs are an essential part of hip-hop culture, others disagree. Dating back to the mid-80s, "The Roxanne Wars" ignited several rivalries in hip-hop, leading to the genre's first diss record and considered by some as the first-ever "rap beef."

Most recently, Kendrick Lamar's popular single, "Not Like Us," which was the breakout single of a string of diss tracks aimed towards Drake and has since evolved into a pop culture anthem. While releasing diss tracks is the traditional route artists have taken, social media has changed the game. Earlier this year, Nicki Minaj and Megan Thee Stallion's rap beef divided fans as their online jabs escalated.The "Pink Friday 2" artist insulted the Houston rapper on Twitter after being offended by her song lyrics in "Hiss." Minaj followed up by releasing the diss track "Big Foot."

In her latest interview with Billboard, Megan opened up about the feud and the likelihood of a truce. "I don't even know what could be reconciled because I, to this day, don't know what the problem is." Then, there was an ongoing dispute between JT and GloRilla in April 2024. In a series of tweets, both rappers argued about a rumor that GloRilla slapped the City Girl at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards. More and more rappers are opting to address their issues on social media rather than in the recording studio. 

In 2022, Ice Spice catapulted into Internet stardom after her smash single "Munch (Feelin' U)" went viral on TikTok. Music listeners declared her "the People's Princess" as her fan base grew from other popular song releases like "Bikini Bottom," "Think U The Sh–t (Fart)," and "Princess Diana." Cleotrapa is a content creator-turned-rapper who started making music in 2018 with the release of her diss track "Letter to My Haters." She later released hits like "Main Character," "I Don't Trap," and most recently, "Rockstar." As peers in the music industry, Ice Spice and Cleotrapa connected within the same year, seemingly forming a friendship. Cleo joined Ice Spice on tour as her opening act this summer. 

So what made them decide to cut ties with each other?

Initially, the back-and-forth exchange began after Cleotrapa shared her tour experience on TikTok, dealing with alleged mistreatment from Ice Spice during July and August 2024. "I can fall out with a friend over miscommunications and misunderstandings," Cleotrapa said in her TikTok video. "That's okay. We can work it out. Honestly, it's not something that has to end everything. But you actually have one time to show me that you are jealous, intimidated, untrustworthy, fake, disloyal, ingenuine, manipulative, and calculated. I promise you that will be the last time you ever play with me."

In the six-part video series, Cleotrapa recalled moments from the tour when she was forced to self-promote, change in bathrooms, and pay for her hotel rooms. To top it off, she also claimed that she wasn't paid for going on the tour. After garnering over nine million views, the videos went viral, and Cleotrapa's rant eventually sparked social media debates, with some fans supporting Cleotrapa and others condemning Ice Spice's behavior.

According to Cleotrapa, Ice Spice invited her to be her opening act a day before they were scheduled to hit the road for her "Y2K! World Tour." She described the last-minute request as "calculated" and claimed that she was only invited on tour as an attempt to clean up the rapper's image after her derogatory text messages were leaked. In April 2024, the headliner's public fallout with Baby Storme, another former friend of the Y2K artist, was a case for serious damage control after her ex-best friend accused the rapper of being a "colorist," "fatphobic," and, overall, not a good friend. She exposed screenshots of their private conversations that also showed Ice Spice calling Nicki Minaj "ungrateful" and "delusional" after the release of their hit song, "Barbie World."

Ice Spice eventually responded to Cleotrapa's allegations in a live conversation on Twitter's audio platform, Spaces. "Crashing out is sad, you guys," the Grammy-nominated artist said. "The scary part of fame honestly is the moment somebody feels like they can no longer use your platform or they're not getting exactly what they want out of the situation the way that they want it. That's when they decide to crash out every single time…You [Cleotrapa] got less than 10,000 listeners. I'm sharing my stage with you, and you feel so entitled. You think the people who work for me are supposed to work for you, too. That's so crazy to me."

Although Ice Spice rose quickly to fame, it isn't an excuse for her alleged mistreatment of Cleotrapa as she continues to rise in the music industry. Despite the Bronx headliner wanting to give Cleotrapa an opportunity, her alleged actions indicate that she didn't truly value her as an artist and had no intention of supporting her "friend" from the start. Frankly, Ice Spice needed Cleotrapa more than she needed her. As an independent artist, Cleotrapa has a lot going on in her career. She has a solid social following and supportive fanbase, has secured notable brand deals with Milk Makeup and Timberland, and has starred on VH1's reality show The Impact: New York. Obviously, Cleotrapa has a promising journey ahead of her that doesn't require disingenuous handouts.

However, as an up-and-coming artist, it's not uncommon to hear horror stories about musicians' early encounters as they grind to the top. Cleotrapa is just one of the many who openly and candidly shared a unique experience where she was assured that her "friend" would look out for her, which, unfortunately, was not the case. "I want my fans to learn from this," Cleotrapa said on the verge of tears. "...Understand that no matter what the opportunity is, nobody should make you feel less than or make you feel like sh–t because they gave you an opportunity." 

Cleotrapa believes that Ice Spice had ulterior motives when asking her to come on tour with her, alluding to the fact that Spice only brought her on to be a "token." Thankfully, Cleotrapa understood her worth and knew when to leave an unfavorable situation, which isn't always the easiest course of action for a rising star. The music industry is a cutthroat business. And for emerging artists like Cleotrapa, it's not unlikely for them to be taken advantage of. The rapper said in her TikTok rant that this was her first tour, so she didn't know what to expect. Surely, the alleged mistreatment from Ice Spice was the last thing she would've predicted from her "friend." Although her experience didn't pan out as she hoped, her transparency is a cautionary tale for other up-and-coming artists to be aware of. 

Unbothered reached out to both artists for comment, and they have yet to respond. We'll have to continue to watch as this plays out to see if the former friends turned foes will eventually make amends or keep the beef alive.