The tension between O.T. Genasis and Keyshia Cole is growing. The rapper recently made a few crude remarks about the singer, and she bit back with a few scathing comments of her own. The ongoing verbal spat between these unlikely foes stemmed from O.T. Genasis giving his twist on Keyshia’s hit classic “Love.” After she came forward to say she didn’t like his Crip-themed song “Never Knew,” the rapper seemed to take the comments personally.

Keyshia’s sister, Neffeteria “Neffe” Pugh, took aim at O.T. Genasis after she saw what he said about her sister. The rapper later came forward to issue a post-and-delete apology because he claims that things are going too far. In a text image, O.T. wrote, “Look @keyshiacole I was really just jokin on dat IG LIVE SH*T..Pple screen record and blow it out of proportion.Make a n*gga really look thirsty I ain’t trippin.”

In the caption, the rapper added, “I just be playin wit u cuz u played wit me.i ain’t trippin off you cuh! It’s all just fun.I apologize if I was disrespectful..PS- Just don’t disrespect me neither for yo n*gga have to carry yo weight.” He ended his message with the hashtags, “#IMDONEWITTHIS #GETTINGOUTOFHAND.” We wouldn’t be surprised if sometime in the future we see these two shock everyone and link up on a single. Check out O.T. Genasis delivering his apology to Keyshia Cole below.

What started as a harmless reimagining of a Keyshia classic at the hands of O.T. Genasis has since descended into a quagmire of disrespect. True, it's no secret that Cole had no love for O.T.'s so-bad-it's-good anthem "Never Knew," but it's clear that the gloves have hit the floor largely in part to Genasis' recent batch of below-the-belt comments made on Instagram Live.

While streaming, one spectator had the sense to mention Keyshia Cole in the chat, prompting O.T. to weigh in accordingly. “She ain’t shit. Keyshia Cole ain’t shit, I am," he declares. "I’m the shit. Keyshia Cole ain’t. Coochie smelling like fish sticks. That’s what’s going on. Coochie smelling like fish sticks. Keyshia Cole pussy smelling like fish sticks. Nah, I’m not gon’ talk about her.”

Given the rough and highly personal nature of the criticism, echoing Uncle Murda's notorious teardown of K. Michelle, Keyshia Cole took to Twitter to fire back a few responses of her own. Though she never called him out by name, Cole does proceed to liken her foe to a tortoise, making it clear that she's not above retaliating should he continue his tirade. "Hope this font go over some of u lame ass turtle head looking ass n*** heads!" she writes. "And hoe ass bitch n***s ain’t exempt."

Check out the comments below -- did O.T. Genasis take it too far?

With worldwide boredom at an all-time high, many artists and entertainers have decided to fill the void with playful competition, a process that has led to a rampant rise in battle-fever. We’ve already seen producers like Scott Storch and Mannie Fresh facing off, as well as artists like Tory Lanez and French Montana, all in the name of sportsmanship. Over the weekend, T-Pain and Lil Jon went head-to-head in a duel of the hits, and 2 Chainz fired off a challenge to anybody willing to step up. 

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Eager to get in on the fun, OT Genasis took to Instagram to invite 21 Savage to a full-fledged “sing-off,” a challenge likely fueled by 21’s impromptu karaoke session of R&B hits, with tunes from Beyonce, Usher, Aaliyah, Brandy, and more. He even put his falsetto to the test with an admirable rendition of Pharrell‘s “Frontin.” Suffice it to say, 21 Savage’s fledging R&B career is looking more promising than ever. Even OT Genasis couldn’t deny the dulcet nature of his tones. 

“21 Savage you have a beautiful voice, bro,” wrote OT. “I say we have a sing-off.” After Shade Room picked up the story, OT’s old sparring partner Keyshia Cole, whom he covered on the cult classic “Never Knew,” slid through to offer 21 her co-sign. OT clapped back with a playful-but-not warning, advising Cole to “not start with him again.” As for 21, he made sure to let OT know he wasn’t about to back down. “Ot don’t want this smoke,” he replied, fueling our hope that this ill-fated event can indeed be wished into existence. 

Sound off below — who would you put your money on, in the event that 21 and OT Genasis went head-to-head in a singing battle?