Nicki Minaj has been accused of being a bully in the past, but the Queens native has always remained undaunted by the accusations and is now laughing off the label.

Following the release of Pink Friday 2, the Young Money rapper sat down for an interview with Apple Music 1’s Ebro Darden that was published on Thursday (January 4).

Among a myriad topics, the pair discussed the difference between her rap persona and every day Onika, and she noted she shows up as a bit of both as she joked about “making fun of these hoes.”

“You’re just getting Nicki when you hear the music,” she said around the 8:39 mark. “The other stuff is work and some of it is play.

I mean, let’s face it. This is my fucking job. I have to have some sort of fun. If it means making fun of these hoes – why the fuck not?

“The thing is though, I’ve realized it’s like a movie. They’ve made me the bad guy so I’ve welcomed the challenge.

You know why? It’s because I know I can accept that challenge. None of them can. None.”

Back in September, frequent Nicki Minaj critic Akademiks referred to her as a “gangsta bully,” adding that he feels she’s merely trying to compete with Cardi B.

“If you ask me, I think she’s always in some competition with Cardi B,” he said.

“Cardi B’s a hood bitch from the Bronx who’s also a Blood; Nicki Minaj and how she’s been acting recently, it felt like it was almost compensating like, ‘Bitch, I’m like that too.’

“Nicki has been embracing the street shit and showing it way more than we would even expect. Remember, her music ain’t like that. We don’t know her to be like that.”

While Akademiks also acknowledged that Nicki Minaj is a talented rapper — and might, in fact, be one of the most talented rappers of her generation — he posited that her “clown behavior,” especially as it involves her husband, Kenneth Petty, is all but destroying her legacy.