In his next studio album, Cardi B asks fans “Am I drama?” Weeks before the release of the album, some who have been following their judgment seem to have decided on an answer.
Cardi B, the rapper winner of the Grammy Award, took the position in a room of the Los Angeles court on Wednesday in a case that involved an alleged incident with former security guard Emani Ellis.
Ellis filed a lawsuit against Cardi B, whose real name is Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar, claiming that he physically attacked her in the hall of a Beverly Hills Obstetral office in 2018, according to judicial documents obtained by NBC News and Today.com. Cardi B has denied accusations.
The trial has become the last legal case that involves a celebrity to captivate the public online and cause a large number of memes. Many have compared it with the ski accident test of actor Gwyneth Paltrow in 2023, which caused a similar reaction of fans.
In clips that have circulated through X, Tiktok and Instagram, cardi b fans have joked about their facial reactions and overwhelming answers to the questions during their interrogation.
“Cardi B in the Court today was like a SNL parody,” wrote an X user in a publication that accompanied the testimony video. The publication had been seen more than 7.2 million times from Thursday afternoon.
A Cardi B representative did not respond to a comment request on Thursday.
Aymar Jean Christian, communications professor at Northwestern University, said online people are probably attracted to the testimony because they admire the authenticity of Cardi B.
In the midst of a “hyper formalized environment … most people would assume that you are going to make a sign of being demure, tampe all interesting and rough edges of yourself for a small procedure,” said Christian.
Instead, Cardi B is seen “being spicy, a bit impertinent, and I think people enjoy that,” said Christian. “She can’t help being herself, that’s why it’s a great star.”
Ellis, who testified on Monday, alleges in judicial documents that Cardi B hit her in the head, face and body, spit it and used multiple racial insults. She states that Cardi B “used her celebrity status” to fire her.
Ellis said he received “psychological and medical treatment as a result of this incident,” according to demand. She seeks damage that includes medical expenses, compensation for emotional and physical suffering and lost wages, according to judicial documents.
Cardi B has denied spitting or scratching Ellis.
Despite the seriousness of the accusations, many online seemed fun by Cardi B’s testimony.
At the time of the alleged incident, he said, he maintained the pregnancy of his first child with the rapper in secret. She said Ellis followed her to her appointment with the fifth floor doctor.
Pressing about whether I was “angry” in Ellis that day, Cardi B said: “Yes, I was angry! Because I’m pregnant! And this girl is about to hit my butt!”
When asked if he was “disabled” at the time of the alleged incident, he said: “When you are pregnant, I am very disabled. Do you want me to tell you things I can’t do?”
His response met laughing in the courtroom, according to clips that circulated online.
“This is Cardi in his cardiest,” wrote the Popular Meme Saint Hoax, who has 3.4 million followers on Instagram, wrote in the subtitle of a publication about the trial.
Meanwhile, Culture commentator Evan Ross Katz, who has 427,000 followers on Instagram, joked in his position that he would have been withdrawn from the courtroom if he were there for the testimony of Cardi B “because of laughing so strong for this.”
Its publication included Cardi B clips describing Ellis as “heavy security” and someone who “seems to protect a building.”
Some online also commented on the various wigs of Cardi B. He even confused a lawyer in the courtroom after changing a short black wig for a long blonde.
“What is your real hair?” The lawyer asked, according to the video clips of the online shared trial. “Or are the two reais?”
“They are wigs,” Cardi B said after laughing.
But the case has also been very heated.
Ellis’s lawyer asked Cardi B to remember the language he used to interact with Ellis in 2018, according to a video shared in X by journalist Meghann Cuniff. She responded by repeating the blasphemies she told Ellis that day. Then, the lawyer asked Cardi B to say the comments directly “to his face.”
The exchange led the lawyer of Cardi B Peter J. Anderson to object and ask the judge: “His honor, can we have civility in this court?”
“Why don’t we lower the temperature a bit?” The judge replied. “If you have real questions to ask you, please do it. It’s not time to argue with it.”
Christian, the Northwest professor, suggested that the trial could give Cardi B some additional advertising before his new album, which will be launched on September 19.
“It seems to me that he knows that this is filming, and he is using it as any other media opportunity, which is an opportunity for people to really know and be on his side,” he said.
The trial is expected to continue and conclude next week after Labor Day holidays.
