Nicki Minaj, left, and Mariah Carey. (WENN.COM) Images: Famous Celebrity Feuds

Nicki Minaj has used her reality TV show to air her side of her infamous feud with fellow American Idol judge Mariah Carey in October.

The stars were filming an audition for the programme when they became embroiled in a heated argument over a contestant, with the rapper unleashing a foul-mouthed tirade at Carey.

Footage of the bust-up leaked online and reports suggested Minaj raged off-camera, "If I had a gun I would shoot her (Carey)," but the Starships hitmaker has now opened up about the feud, claiming she was "egged on" by her rival.

In her reality show Nicki Minaj: My Truth, which aired on Sunday, Minaj is followed by cameras as she reacts to news that a clip of the fight has emerged online.

She says, "She's (Carey) admitted she did not want another female doing the show. She didn't want someone stealing her shine. Twenty minutes before that (argument) happened, she egged me on. I just know that I had reached my boiling point.

"I stormed off the stage because I didn't want to do that. I left and when I came back, it was another jab. (She was) nitpicking, nitpicking, nitpicking. I stay away from that. I had to make it clear that if you do this again, I'm going to do this again."

Minaj then goes on to praise the Hero hitmaker, while vowing not to step down from the panel despite their bickering.

She adds, "I'm happy that Mariah's on the panel. You got one of the best singers who ever sung on (sic) the world. But you have a problem with me being on there. In life, you react, and what you saw was a reaction. Leading up to it, there was a lot of passive-aggressive comments. It was another way to get me off the show. We're having a great time on Idol. No one (is) going to run me off that motherf**king show."