Cardi B slams ‘mean’ fans over romance with NFL star despite spending Christmas apart

‘You want me to put my baby back? What do you want me to do, you want me to leave my man?’ asked the rapper

US rapper Cardi B has publicly addressed her fans on social media, urging them to "calm down" amid intense speculation surrounding her relationship with NFL star Stefon Diggs.

The 33-year-old hip-hop artist took to X to confront what she described as "mean" behaviour from her followers, following reports that she and the 32-year-old New England Patriots player spent Christmas Day separately.

The couple, who welcomed their first child together in November, became the subject of online discussion after fans noticed Diggs’ absence from Cardi B’s festive Instagram posts. The NFL player himself hinted at separate celebrations, sharing on his Instagram stories that he was spending time with his other children.

In a lengthy video, Cardi B, whose real name is Belcalis Almanzar, directly challenged her audience. "You need to calm down," she stated.

"You’ve been dragging me for three or four days, you’ve been a little bit too mean. I can’t go back in time, I already had a baby. You want me to put my baby back? What do you want me to do, you want me to leave my man?"

The Grammy Award-winning rapper also highlighted the pressures of her upcoming work commitments. "I have so much work to do when January starts that is stressing me out, I have to rehearse for 10-12 hours a day for tour," she explained, adding, "I need my support system, my fans, to love me. I want good for you. Wish me the same thing."

The baby born in November is her first with Diggs. Cardi B also has three children from her previous marriage to rapper Offset: daughters Kulture, seven, and Blossom, one, and son Wave, four.

Cardi B and Stefon Diggs sat courtside cheering on the New York Knicks against there Boston Celtics (Getty)

The couple went public with their relationship in May after first sparking romance rumours with the NFL star in February, after they were spotted arriving together at a Miami hotel.

They were spotted together in public, sitting courtside at NBA playoff game between the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics in Madison Square Garden.

In July, the 32-year-old “WAP” rapper then removed all posts featuring the NFL star from her profile, sparking breakup rumours.

“I’m very dramatic. I’m dramatic,” she said during an episode of Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast. “That’s the thing, something that to people is a big deal, to me it’s not a big deal at the moment. And then it’s like, ugh, it became something it’s not.”

She explained that she didn’t actually delete the posts, she archived them.