Cardi B admits falling asleep during assault trial, turns court moment into album promo

Cardi B

Only Cardi B could turn a courtroom slip into late-night talk show gold. The Bronx rapper, 32, admitted she nodded off during her civil assault trial, telling Jennifer Hudson this week: “I’m not even going to lie, I was. I had a long night! I’m in the middle of an album rollout. I was so sleepy, I was trying to fight it but I just couldn’t.”

Clips of Cardi with heavy eyes had already made the rounds on Court TV and social media back in September. Now, she’s laughing about it—and, in true Cardi fashion, using it to fuel her next big release.

Balancing trial stress and music grind

The trial wrapped on September 2 with Cardi found not liable in a civil case tied to accusations from a former security guard. Still, the process wore her down. “I missed my kids’ first day of school,” she said. “And then, when I get to court, I realize it’s being televised on national TV. It’s like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’”

Cardi B nearly fell asleep during the closing arguments of her $20M civil assault trial 🥱😴

pic.twitter.com/31GXQhXSN0

— My Mixtapez (@mymixtapez) September 2, 2025

Her stress wasn’t just about the legal spotlight. The hearings overlapped with the rollout of her upcoming album Am I the Drama?, which drops September 19.

Court memes become marketing

Cardi didn’t waste the viral courtroom chatter. Just a day after the trial, she announced “Courtroom Edition” copies of the album, featuring meme-worthy cover art of herself from inside the courthouse. “BY POPULAR DEMAND,” she told fans on Instagram.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Cardi B (@iamcardib)

Since then, she’s been in full hustle mode—selling vinyl and CDs on TikTok, even hitting the streets herself to push Am I the Drama?.

Also read: Police arrest suspect in theft of hard drives containing unreleased Beyoncé music

Eyes on the bigger picture

In her latest Billboard interview, Cardi said a Grammy would be nice, but what she really wants is lasting respect. “Success for me will be people saying, ‘She put out a great album.’ If at 3 a.m. people are talking about the album, that’s success.”

The album features tracks like Imaginary Playerz, Outside, Up, and her smash WAP.