In one word describe Nicki Minaj.
Swag!
What is your response to those who compare you to Lil’ Kim?
Listen to “Beam Me Up Scotty” or “The Pink Streak in My Hair.”
What sets you apart from other female rappers in the industry and makes you unique?
I don’t think of myself as a female rapper. I consider myself a rapper in general.
If you could do a track with two other female emcees, whom do you feel could match you skill for skill?
No one!
Aside from making music, possibly doing a reality TV show (if Young Money produces it) and finding a Bad Bitch for that Super Snatch, what else is on the horizon for Nicki Minaj?
Taking over the world and going to Africa.
What would you do over there?
Do a lot of shows, and take books, paper and pencils to all my little kids over there.
Speaking about finding a Bad Bitch, you have all but admitted that you are bisexual, do you prefer one sex more so than the other and if so why?
I have not admitted to being bisexual and will not admit to being bisexual.
Do you feel that female emcees have to depend more so on their sexuality than their skills at verbal linguistics in order to get ahead in the music industry?
No they don’t!
Do you think that female emcees will ever get the respect in the music industry that they deserve?
Yes they will, in the next 12 months when Nicki Minaj drops. Things will change.
Do you feel that being the first artist signed to Young Money and being a female puts more pressure on you as an artist to be successful?
I have always been a perfectionist. So the pressure doesn’t come from being the first artist or being a female artist. The pressure comes from me wanting to do what I do in a perfect way.
What is it like working with Wayne, the business man versus Wayne, the rapper?
I love working with Wayne. Working with Wayne is definitely unpredictable that’s for sure. He won’t sit you down and school you, but if you watch and listen, you will learn what things work for him and how he’s become successful.
What producers and artists are you working with on your upcoming album?
I’ll definitely be working with Ron Browz. He sent me a bunch of tracks and I’m feelin’ his sound. Other than that I can’t really speak on that just yet.
What is your creative process for writing a new song?
I like to sit at home alone when I write. It’s more so about my delivery than it is about the lyrics. I don’t like to write when I’m in the studio.
What made you want to be in the music business?
I used to hang out with the dudes on the block and they would be rapping and I started rapping. I would let people hear it and I was horrible, of course, and I just began working at it. I always loved hip-hop though. I was one of those kids that wanted to dance like Salt-N-Pepa and we’d cut up jeans and stuff. You know what I mean. I’ve always loved the culture. Like, I love Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh and those type of artists. I just didn’t know that I could do it. When I started working at it, I actually got good. I was like, “Hey, wait a minute this might be something here, let me really focus.” That’s what I did. I’ve been really focused at being Nicki Minaj, the solo artist for about two years now. I think I’ve been doing pretty good so far. I know people that’s been doing it for 10 years that you ain’t interviewing right now, let’s just say that.
Who inspired you to become an artist and how?
Wayne inspires me very much. Foxxy and Kim inspire me a lot. Remy inspires me. Lauryn Hill inspires me. Right now Leona Lewis inspires me. Gwen Stefani and Natasha Bedingfield inspire me. I’m inspired by a lot of different kinds of artists. It’s always something new, but I just love music and I am inspired by good music.
Your vocal abilities are just as sick as your rap vernacular. Will we be hearing more singing than rapping on your upcoming album and which do you prefer?
First of all, thanks, because I’m still a little bit nervous with my whole singing stuff, but I like singing more than I like rapping. I believe that I’m better at rapping than singing. It’s always a toss-up for me because I actually listen to more singing than hip-hop or rap. So naturally when I go to the studio, I want to sing on everything. I’m in this singing stage or phase so I really don’t know. I would love for my album to be equally balanced between singing and rapping actually. I just hope everybody will be open to that.
It’s funny that you say that, because in the small snippets that I heard you singing on the “Sucka Free” mixtape, I got the vibe that even though your rap skills show your strength and a confidence in your abilities, I get the impression that you’re more comfortable with singing and that’s what you really want to do.
Wow, that’s so interesting. Yep! I think you definitely hit it on the head. A lot of people don’t see that at all. It’s the truth. I have fun singing. You know what it is, when I hear a beat, I’ll hear a melody before I hear a rap on it. I’ll hear a hook. Sometimes I have a whole bunch of stuff where I just have hooks written to ‘em. I like singing hooks and I’ll hear harmonies in my head on how it should go. I’m just transitioning as I get deeper into my music, I guess.
On your track “Autobiography” on the “Sucka Free” mixtape you talked about various personal subjects. What words of advice can you give to young ladies out there who may have been through similar situations as yourself?
Whenever you make something larger than yourself, like for instance I wanna do music, but I don’t wanna do music because of me, it’s bigger than me. It’s for my mother, it’s for my family, it’s for my manager. I wanna make her proud. Whenever you make something bigger than you, you get, like, this extraordinary strength that, if I was just doing this for me, to look cute and say I rap or I sing, I would have given up.
Everything I’ve gone through has made my career and future larger than me. In other words, everything is riding on this. My mother’s future is riding on this. My brother’s future is riding on this. So with all the things that I’ve been through, I’ve said, you know what, I can give up, but it’s not about me. When your life gets to a point where it’s no longer about you, you will surpass your own expectations of your own dreams and goals and stuff like that. So that’s what you have to do … just look at the bigger picture and then all of the things that have happened in your life, the times that you cried yourself to sleep. It will seem smaller in the bigger scheme of things.
What types of movies does Nicki Minaj like to watch?
One of my favorite movies is “Sarafina.” Every time I watch that movie I cry hysterically and I cannot get enough of it. I don’t know what it is about that movie that I love. I also love anything that Jada Pinkett-Smith is in. My other favorite movie of all times is “Gladiator.” I loved that movie although I’m not a big action movie type person.
Do you have a favorite television or reality show?
Back in the days I was hooked on “Real World.” Being that I’m focused on my music, I really don’t have time to watch much TV. If I had to pick a show it would be “Judge Judy.” I friggin’ love that show. That little lady, seriously, I want to adopt her and take her home. She reminds me of me. I see the good in her because I know what it’s like to mean business. She just doesn’t have time for stupidity. She hates stupidity and so do I. I love Judge Judy.
What else is going on in Nicki Minaj’s world that she wants her fans to know about?
I’m into being more health conscious right now. I’m just trying to get myself healthy and in the gym. That’s really all I’ve been doing and focusing on is my music. Getting the music out and still deciding who I’m going to sign with. Record companies have been showing their interest, but we just have to narrow it down. I’ve said recently that a record company cannot give Nicki Minaj a “female rapper” deal. We’re not signing those. They wanna throw $400,000 at you and want you to sign away everything. It’s almost like they set you up for failure. It’s like you can’t really market yourself on that little bit of money. Then when your album flops, it’s a wrap. If I flop, at least let me have done everything I could possibly do. Let my label do everything they could possibly do. That’s my outlook on it right now. I mean no disrespect to the labels who have offered us those type of deals, but we just have to think big right now.
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