Aretha Franklin didn’t actually compliment Nicki Minaj at all – she dodged the question with a now‑famous bit of shade.

Quick Scoop

In a Wall Street Journal interview promoting her album Aretha Franklin Sings the Great Diva Classics , Aretha was asked to give short thoughts on several modern stars.

She called Adele a “young singer, good singer” and Alicia Keys a “young performer, good writer/producer,” and described Taylor Swift with the now‑viral line “great gowns, beautiful gowns.”

But when the interviewer brought up Nicki Minaj, Aretha replied:

“Nicki Minaj… I’m going to pass on that one.”

That’s it — that one line is what people quote when they ask “what did Aretha Franklin say about Nicki Minaj,” and it’s widely read as Aretha choosing silence over saying anything positive.

At the time, blogs and forums framed it as classic Aretha shade, pointing out that she had a history of making very pointed or minimal comments about younger divas, and that Nicki was just the latest target.

TL;DR: Aretha Franklin was asked about Nicki Minaj and simply said, “I’m going to pass on that one,” which fans and commentators took as deliberate, icy shade rather than support.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.