Rapper Cardi B has been sparring online with former Trump campaign strategist Alex Bruesewitz after allegations that she was loosely connected to a firm that, in a report shared by Politico, claimed that a third of rapper Nicki Minaj’s X engagement came from bots and fake accounts.
The disinformation detection firm Cyabra shared a report with Politico reviewing Minaj’s “political-related posts” on X, and said that 33 percent of accounts engaging with her posts in the comments were “assessed as fake.” The firm added that this was “substantially higher than baseline levels typically observed in organic social media discourse.”
Cyabra said that, based on its review of 51 of Minaj’s posts between November 11 and December 28, it believes with “high confidence that a coordinated fake campaign was actively amplifying political content on Nicki Minaj’s X account during the period reviewed.”
Politico reported that Cyabra said it was “85 percent confident” that more than 18,000 profiles identified were fake.
Newsweek has contacted Cardi B via her agent, Mike Guirguis, and Minaj via social media for comment.
Why It Matters
Cardi B and Minaj have both been in the political spotlight in recent months.
Cardi B has engaged in an online dispute with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regarding the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), while Minaj has been joining forces with the Trump administration, vocally supporting the president. Her fans have been sharing their plans to become Republican Party supporters as well.
The two rappers have had ongoing tension for years, which has been well documented since it began in 2017 when Minaj reportedly liked a post mocking Cardi B’s rapping style. After that, the two rappers allegedly continued to diss each other through guest verses and have had multiple social media spats.
What To Know
Bruesewitz is known as the social media guru who helped Trump return to the White House through what was called the “podcast strategy,” by securing Trump interviews on popular shows to capture the attention of younger voters in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election. He has since taken on an outside adviser role and is a senior figure at the president’s PAC.
He also seems to be friendly with Minaj, as the rapper recently attended his wedding, which was held at Trump’s Doral Golf Course, along with Trump family members, senior administration officials and MAGA celebrities, according to the celebrity.land.
After the report was released, Bruesewitz took to X to say that it was “100% BS,” writing that Minaj is “the most popular female rapper of all time,” and “does not need ‘bots’ to promote her on social media.”
Bruesewitz said in his post that Cyabra is “partnered with Cardi B’s agent,” adding it was “incredibly unethical and inappropriate” to fail to “disclose that relationship, given the very public disputes in the music industry.”
According to a deleted, archived page from 2025 on Cyabra’s website, which Bruesewitz shared on X, Cardi B’s agent, Mike Guirguis, also known as Mike G, sat on Cyabra’s Brand and Entertainment Council at the time.
Guirguis has responded to the allegations, writing on X that his “advisory role and investment in Cyabra along with multiple other tech companies has absolutely nothing to do with Cardi B.”
“Cardi doesn’t need bots, narratives, or manufactured noise. She moves culture on her own,” he said. Bruesewitz responded to his post: “I never alleged that Cardi uses bots. I simply pointed out that you represent Cardi and also happen to sit on Cyabra’s advisory council. Given the history between Cardi & Nicki, it’s a big fact for Politico to omit.”
Bruesewitz also shared a screenshot of a since-deleted Cardi B post that asked him to prove her affiliation with the firm and threatened to sue him. Joseph McBride, Bruesewitz’s lawyer, also jumped to the adviser’s defense, saying: “if you want a legal battle… I am here for it.”
Cardi B has since replied to the Trump adviser on X, writing: “I do not have anything to do with that and I don’t give AF!!” She added that she was “still gonna sue you, you wet dirty dog.”
Bruesewitz hit back again, questioning on X what the rapper would sue him for, writing: “I didn’t say you were ‘involved.’ I simply, correctly, pointed out that your rep, Mike G, is on the advisory council of Cyabra, the firm that released the report on @NICKIMINAJ ‘bots,’ now you’re crashing out. Given the history between you two, I think it’s an important fact that Politico omitted from their story.”
His retaliation was met with another response from Cardi B, who said: “You involved me and disturbed me for no reason.” She added: “I don’t got s*** to do with their story, keep me out of it.”
In a separate post, Bruesewitz also pointed to a page in the report listing various accounts interacting with Minaj on X, and said that Cyabra included the accounts of Turning Point USA and United Nations Ambassador Michael Waltz on a page he said discussed “fake accounts identified amplifying Minaj’s political content.”
On that page, Cyabra separates accounts into four groups, and states that those in “Quadrant 2,” referred to as “Amplifiers,” exhibit “bot-like behavior marked by little to no original content and high engagement with others’ posts.” It does not say the same about the accounts mentioned by Bruesewitz, which are listed in “Quadrant 4,” or “Emerging contributors.”
Bruesewitz told Newsweek: “Cardi B’s crash out online was triggered simply because I pointed out that her agent, Mike G, serves on the advisory council of Cyabra, the company that conducted the report. I never suggested she was personally involved. However, from the very beginning, I said Politico should have disclosed the agent connection, given the longstanding feud between Cardi and Nicki, because it could reasonably call the data’s impartiality into question. I also don’t think the company is all that sophisticated. They ran a couple of test campaigns for me last summer after Mike G, Cardi’s agent, introduced us. Nice guys, but I wasn’t impressed!”
Bruesewitz added, “I also stand by the position that I don’t believe Nicki or anyone close to her bought bots to engage with her account. She is the most successful and popular female rapper of all time, she doesn’t need fake engagement.”
Minaj is yet to comment on the report or the fallout.
What People Are Saying
Cardi B said in a post on X on Monday: “Listen, you involved me in something that has nothing to do wit me so now we’re gonna talk about the facts.. Cyabra is a data company with a lot of investors like Mike G, customers like Elon Musk and Pepsi that use that company for data and even has Mike Pompeo on the board of advisors.. so what you need to focus on is the fact that data is VERY real and leave me out of your bulls***. I do not have anything to do with that and I don’t give AF!! Now lie and say that’s not true!!! See what happen when you involve me in s*** that don’t have nothing to do with me? I get down to the GRISTLE of it!! And btw I am still gonna sue you, you wet dirty dog.”
She also wrote in a separate post: “The fact of the matter is, so far every single show of mine has been sold out. Packed from top to bottom! They said I wasn’t gonna commit after I gave birth, they said I wasn’t gonna take it seriously, but I take it very seriously. I perform for two hours and don’t complain.. not only do I treat my shows like concerts, I treat them like parties and have a good time wit my people that why I get REAL reviews from REAL attendees whether that’s my fans, celebrities, or just people that wanna have a good time. Thank you!!”
Mike G, Cardi B’s agent, wrote on X: “Let’s be clear: my advisory role and investment in Cyabra along with multiple other tech companies has absolutely nothing to do with Cardi B. Cardi doesn’t need bots, narratives, or manufactured noise. She moves culture on her own. I invest in innovation. I represent artists. Those are separate lanes. Trying to spin this into something else is lazy and misleading.”
Joseph McBride, Bruesewitz’s lawyer, told Newsweek: “Alex is right, and I stand with him. He pointed out a fact. Mike G sits on Cyabra’s advisory council. If a media outlet is going to rely on a report from a company tied to one side of a very public feud, that relationship should be disclosed. He never said Cardi orchestrated anything. He never accused her of manipulating data. He said the agent connection matters because it can reasonably raise questions about impartiality. That is a fair position. And the idea that Nicki needs to buy bots is ridiculous. She is the most successful female rapper of all time. She does not need fake engagement. We do not cower to threats. We take on bullies every day. If stating a verifiable fact and demanding transparency triggers outrage, that says more about them than it does about Alex.”
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