After some controversy surrounding her Y2K! cover, Ice Spice unveiled an alternate version on Sunday (June 23). The image saw the Bronx rapper towering over New York City’s skyline, holding a train in one hand with police helicopters flying nearby.
Like the previous, the artwork featured a largely blue and green color scheme. However, in the new photo, Ice could be seen wearing leopard-print shorts and a cropped jacket. There’s also a miniature version of the “Deli” hitmaker trapped inside a second train running between her legs.
Unfortunately, the latest iteration received mixed reactions too. “Girl, I love you, but [these] covers ain’t it. They look so cheap,” read one comment with nearly 3,000 likes. Another fan wrote, “It’s giving Halloween Temu, and we are here for it!”
Meanwhile, someone defended the musician against accusations that she was trying to emulate Nicki Minaj’s Gag City concept. They argued, “She is from NYC, and that is where the setting of this album is supposed to be… y’all Barbs try to find anything to hate on her.”
The Pink Friday rapper notably got a shoutout from Ice on her most recent single, “Phat Butt,” which dropped on June 21. “Never lucky, I been blessed; Queen said I’m the princess/ Been gettin’ them big checks in a big house, havin’ rich sex,” she spat on the RIOTUSA-produced cut.
On June 6, Ice responded to criticism over the original artwork. “David LaChapelle is Y2K! [He’s so] sweet [and] legendary. He didn’t even charge me [because] he f**ks [with] a real b**tch,” she wrote on Twitter. “Thank [you] for all the incredible art you’ve put out through the years. This cover means everything to me [and] yes, ‘Y2K’ was placed on the trash can on purpose. Can [you] guess why?”