The Australian rapper has seen her bid for chart domination under threat with the news that the children’s favourite animated porker is releasing an album

First there was the Beatles v the Rolling Stones. Then there was Blur v Oasis. Now the music industry is about to be plunged into a destructive new rivalry. That’s right: Iggy Azalea v Peppa Pig.

Last month, the Australian rapper announced that her forthcoming album, In My Defense – featuring cover art in which she sits beside a car while blood pours from her head – would be released this Friday. Chart domination looked set to be hers.

But then, this week, the official Peppa Pig Twitter account announced that Peppa – a cartoon pig from a children’s television series about a family of pigs – would also be dropping an album on Friday.

“You can already listen to Bing Bong Zoo NOW!” the account tweeted, knowing full well that this announcement would punch a crater-sized hole through popular culture as we know it. Or at least as Azalea knew it.

IGGY AZALEA (@IGGYAZALEA) It’s over for me now. https://t.co/pWfsAgUbUz

She retweeted Peppa Pig, dismayed that a seemingly benign infant pig would think to ruin her shot at glory like this. Peppa Pig shot back with sass, tweeting a gif of her wearing a crown and dancing in front of a mirror, accompanied by lyrics from Azalea’s biggest hit, Fancy. Things quickly tipped into physical threats, with Azalea tweeting: “You’ll end up a breakfast special” at her animated rival. It is, without any exaggeration at all, literal war.

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You can see why both sides feel threatened. Azalea and Peppa are fighting over the same demographic: Peppa with tracks such as Balloon Ride and Expert Daddy Pig, and Azalea with tracks such as Fuck It Up and Pussy Pop. How are children supposed to choose between such ideologically identical would-be role models?

Who will win? It’s hard to say. Azalea is by far the biggest social-media star of the pair, having 13.2 million Instagram followers to Peppa’s 157,000. But at the same time, there’s no disputing Peppa’s empire. She’s a £1.4bn global brand; Azalea’s net worth is thought to be a measly £4.8m.

Maybe the best way to judge this is on the quality of the music they each produce – but that would involve actually listening to it ... Call it a draw?