Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda” video has crushed the Vevo views record Miley Cyrus set with “Wrecking Ball,” racking up a massive 19.6 million sets of eyes in its first 24 hours. That August 19 release outdid the latter’s previously held record of 19.3 million views, which came with a little help from Terry Richardson.
“Yup, it’s true barbz. They’ll announce tmrw,” the “Bang Bang” rapper tweeted late last night as the final numbers came in courtesy of her fans. Nicki’s play count is obviously high, but it’s not too surprising considering how quickly “Anaconda” went viral, spawning memes and eliciting passionate reactions from fans all across the web.
Nicki’s record also ties the bow on the rapper’s recent reclaiming of “embracing the ass,” a narrative that’d been hijacked by Cyrus herself nearly a year ago during her VMA performance and again this week by Taylor Swift. It’s a fitting end to what SPIN‘s new Senior Critic Carl Wilson is calling the Summer of Ass.
MY #ANACONDA DON’T WANT NONE UNLESS YOU GOT VIEWS HUN: We have a new #24hrVevoRecord at 19.6M for @NICKIMINAJ! https://t.co/HT2ALhB4Ms RT!!
— Vevo (@Vevo) August 22, 2014
