Nicki Minaj is getting a lot of publicity these last two days since Lil Wayne and DJ Drama finally dropped Dedication 4, which features the Young Money Diva on “Mercy,” a Weezy appropriation of Ye’s G.O.O.D. Music recording. Minaj's image is famously crazy, as promoted by the lady talking to split-screen doubles of herself, flipping back and forth between character voices, and spitting all sorts of creative and quirky brags. Her latest on “Mercy” was well-timed against U.S. electoral discussions, as it’s got audiences raving even further about just how far she’ll push it.
The controversial lines read, “I’m a Republican votin’ for Mitt Romney/You lazy bitches is fuckin’ up the economy.”
Fans are running up comment forums all over, wondering whether Nicki has got her tongue in cheek, or whether she’s trading in loony for political. No comment has yet been released by the artist, but Weezy-loving Romney campaigners might stop for a second to consider how long hip hop has been pushing controversy for its own sake. This sure doesn’t seem like anything remotely close to a Yeezy-level statement circa Hurricane Katrina- it reads more like a clown-like provocation in the old tradition of Slim Shady.
If unconvinced, take a look at some of the verse that leads up to the Romney statement. With all the big debates up lately concerning sexist slurs on females, it’s curious that Romney supporters would be so quick to side with a cunning mouth that juxtaposes her endorsement with these lines:
“Drop it to the floor, make that dick shake/My homegirl slurp it like a milkshake/All you niggas want some Nick cake/If ya eat ass I gotta thick plate.” A world where the public is more comfortable with sexual metaphors than political metaphors is a crazy one fit for such an eccentric.
The very fact that Minaj’s statement is a verse within a song should be enough for fans to determine how much credibility it should be honored with. Maybe the South Jamaica Queen is a Republican, maybe she isn’t, but she clearly doesn’t take herself too seriously. Anything written into a loop of playful boasts can and should be seen as metaphor only, until proven otherwise.