With her new song “Side to Side” making into the top 10 of the Billboard Music Chart, Nicki Minaj is sure having the time of her life. The Trinidadian-born, American hip-hop artist first came into the limelight with the release of her album “Pink Friday” in 2010. Seven songs from her debut album reached the Billboard’s Hot 100 at the same time. Two years later she launched her second album “Pink Friday- Roman Reloaded” and became a judge on the 12th season of music reality show American Idol. Known for her colourful quirks and fiery temperament, Nicki Minaj is considered the wildest female rapper of U.S.
Early Life
Parents
The 33 year old singer was born Onika Tanya Maraj. Nicki had a difficult childhood. Initially, before coming to New York, her grandmother raise her while her parents moved to United States looking for a better future. Her father was a drug addict who once burned their house to the ground. She said in an interview that she lived in constant fear that her mother would be killed by her father. Growing up with her abusive father Robert, has helped Nicki in becoming a strong woman says her mother, Carol. When she was a child, Nicki used to create different characters in her mind and live her life through them to get away from all the family problems. Cookie, Harajuku Barbie, Roman Zolanski; all these personalities are created by her. She switches to her energetic alter ego Roman Zolanski while performing on stage.
She still likes to live in the fantasy world and portrays herself as a Barbie doll before the public. Nicki has three brothers named Micaiah, Brandon and Jelani and a sister named Ming. Before she became Nikki Minaj, she worked as a waitress at a restaurant named Red Lobster in New York City. She was fired from there for misbehaviour after getting into a nasty row with a customer.
In 2012, The Guardian asked her in an interview about the root of name change. She answered that when she was signing one of her first production deals, someone convinced her to do it. However, when she is around family and friends she likes be called with her original name.
After her 6 years engagement to Safaree Samuels broke in 2014, she is rumoured to have hooked up with a number of celebrities including Zac Efron, Lil’ Wayne and Drake. The ‘Anaconda’ star has denied all the rumours of ever dating them. Nicki is currently having an on-off relationship with rapper Meek Mill.
Career
The singer’s talent was first discovered through a social network site. Dirty Money Records CEO Fendi signed her to his label after hearing Nicki’s music on her MySpace account. Later Fendi also introduced her to Lil Wayne and Young Money. The doll eyed singer likes to be the centre of controversy. In the 2014, MTV Video Music Awards; Nicki got into a confrontation with host Miley Cyrus while accepting the Best Hip Hop Video award. Her regular social media spats with other celebrities always make news.
Net Worth
Nicki Minaj’s net worth is $70 million.