It looks like Nicki Minaj has been enjoying her retirement. At least, the free schedule has allowed her ample to live out her digital "Get Off My Lawn" fantasies. But you know what, if kids are running amok on your lawn, you have every right to tell them to scatter. Evidently, Nicki's lawn has been amassing a wealth of footprints, nay, bootprints. It's no wonder she's been moving with a chip on her shoulder. Case in point, her latest Instagram PSA directed at those unwilling to pay homage to what she has built.
Sharing a clip of a recent Q&A fielded by young artists like Rap-Unzel and those in attendance, Nicki highlighted one woman's crusade to paint her in a negative light. "My question is for the ladies specifically," she begins. "Who do you look up to in the industry? Unfortunately, you don't have many examples you can look up to. I wouldn't say Nicki would be your example. Or you tell me if she's your example, cause I got a question after that." As she utters the last part, it all but translates to "I wish she would."
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It's no wonder Nicki took the time to set the record straight. "Look @ the hate & bitterness on this BLACK woman’s face when someone says they’re influence is the most dominating female rapper of the last decade chile," begins Nicki, reacting to the woman's disrespectful question," she writes, in a heated Instagram PSA. "ALL OF YOU GIRLS DO THIS. SO SAD. Even male artists gotta pretend in interviews now chile. LMFAO. If you’re this weak-minded you won’t last in this game anyway. This is what’s going on behind the scenes @ award shows, radio shows, etc. They gotta say they was influenced by ppl who was rappin b4 they was born chile. Anything but those 10 little letters on a big sign. N I C K I M I N A J."
The sting is worsened when one of the same artists to have neglected Nicki in the Q&A session was revealed to have sung her praises in another interview -- a point not lost on Jermaine Dupri. To be fair, there's no harm in drawing inspiration from Rah Digga, whose Dirty Harriet album is an unsung gem. Still, Nicki's point remains important, and it's curious to witness these younger artists shy away from paying homage. Especially when people actually use her as a negative benchmark, a "what-not-to-do," an embarrassment. After everything she's done for the game, Nicki deserves better than that.