Days after Steven Tyler raised eyebrows -- and Nicki Minaj's blood pressure -- by [article id="1697899"]telling MTV News[/article] that Minaj would have sent Bob Dylan "to the cornfield" if he auditioned for "American Idol" this season, the Aerosmith frontman has apologized ... though he did take umbrage with Nicki's claim that his comments were racially motivated.

"I apologize if it was taken wrong, Nicki," Tyler told Canadian entertainment show eTalk on Tuesday (November 27). "But I am the farthest thing from [being a racist] ... I am the last thing on this planet as far as being a racist. I don't know where she got that out of me saying I'm not sure how she would have judged Bob Dylan."

After Tyler lambasted the current crop of "Idol" judges for in-fighting -- "They need a manager to say 'Shut the f--- up and just give [auditioners] your opinion," he told MTV News -- and took a swipe at Minaj's judging acumen, [article id="1697941"]Nicki took to Twitter[/article] to respond ... in grand fashion.

In a series of messages, she said Tyler's comment about Dylan was "racist" and suggested her fans "make him a shirt that says 'No Coloreds Allowed'." But in the eTalk interview, Tyler denied that the Dylan jab was racially motivated, and clarified that he meant "if Bob Dylan came on the show, he would have been thrown off."

"Maybe I spoke out of turn," Tyler said. "But a racist I'm not, Nicki."

A rep for Minaj did not respond to MTV News' request for comment on the matter by press time.

Did Tyler speak out of turn, or did Nicki overreact? Let us know in the comments below!