[WATCH] Nicki Minaj Suffers Wardrobe Malfunction During VMAs Costume Change

Nicki Minaj experienced a glitch during the opening performance of the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards Sunday at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif. After rapping her new hit “Anaconda,” Nicki exited the stage to switch outfits before returning to contribute her verse to “Bang Bang,” her collaboration with Jessie J and Ariana Grande.

Alhough Minaj made it back onstage in time to deliver her rap verse, there appeared to be an issue with her snug black dress. Minaj awkwardly covered her chest with her left hand and stomach with her right, appearing to clutch the garment closed in the front, as she delivered her lyrics.

“We ran out of time getting the dress zipped up,” Nicki later explained during an interview in the VMAs press room.

Initially some speculated that Minaj was concealing a snake under her dress. (Nicki had intended to feature a real reptile in the performance, but during rehearsals on Friday, one of her background dancers was bitten by the boa constrictor, and the bit was immediately axed.) But when she left the stage still holding onto her dress, fans realized that something was up.

Minaj had better luck with her outfit when she later joined Usher onstage to perform his song “She Came to Give It to You.”