Shannon Sharpe is extending an olive branch to Nicki Minaj after she took aim at him on the remix to Lil Wayne’s "Banned from NO," a track featured on his Carter VI album.

On the song, Nicki raps: “’Bout to cop you slides, all you do is flip-flop / If I send a pic of Shannon, you ain’t that Sharpe.”

The bar caught fans' attention, and Sharpe didn’t shy away from addressing it on the latest episode of his Nightcap podcast. Offering a public apology, the sports commentator provided some background on the misunderstanding.

“I used to go back and forth with people,” Sharpe explained. “I was talking about Nikki Haley. Nikki Haley said it’s really great for everybody in Black America, and I was like … ‘When has it ever been great?’”

He clarified that his remarks were never intended to disrespect Nicki Minaj, saying, “Nicki, I was not trying to be disrespectful. Of course, I know who you are. I’d be remiss to think you’d know who I am or be familiar with Club Shay Shay. I’m not that arrogant.”

Sharpe continued, offering a sincere invitation to clear the air, “Nicki, I apologize. I meant no disrespect. You’ll always have an open invitation if you ever want to come sit down and have a conversation—or even a private conversation over the phone. It won’t go any further between you and I.”

Addressing the diss directly, Sharpe acknowledged that even though his intent wasn’t malicious, what matters most is how Nicki felt:

“That was not my intent, but intent only matters to me—because clearly you’re still offended. So I apologize sincerely, and hopefully we can move forward.”

Whether Nicki will accept the apology remains to be seen, but Sharpe is clearly hoping to make amends and keep the peace.

Source: Nightcap