Nicki Minaj is HEAVY on the promotional trail with the impending release of her new album, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded.
Interviewed by hip hip impresario Miss Info, Nicki discusses with Complex magazine success, her fragrance and fashion line, hating to rehearse for music videos and more!
Check it out below + her new song with Chris Brown:
What wows you these days? Everything that comes your way keeps becoming bigger, bigger, bigger.
If I wasn’t doing it, I wouldn’t believe it’s possible. I remember when I was working with Jay-Z. It was like, “Oh my God. Did I really just do a song with Jay?” I worked with Mariah and it wasn’t commercially successful. But I had fun and I made a real friendship with her. It was, obviously, a life-changing moment for me. It does feel like every moment is getting bigger and bigger. Not only did I get a call to do a song with Madonna, but then I got a call to do a video with Madonna, and then—oh, by the way—you’re going to do the Super Bowl with Madonna. This is not really happening.
When you’re constantly exceeding your own expectations, how do you set new goals?
Doing the Super Bowl with Madonna doesn’t really change Nicki Minaj’s personal goals. My goal right now is still to put out Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, sell five million copies eventually, and tour every country in the world. That’s what I’ve been working toward. So while the world is talking about, “Oh my God, I can’t believe Nicki Minaj was at the Super Bowl!” I’m mixing and mastering my music. In my scheme of things it’s way bigger.
You’re on track to hit all your marks in 2012. Grammy solo set? Check. New album and tour? Check, check. Five million in sales? Possibly. What else?
I’m working on my fragrance and my apparel line. They took stuff that I’ve worn, focused on what I like, and then they started doing sketches. They’re pretty amazing. I was like “Oh my God, the kids are going to love this.” It’s not gonna get done overnight, but I know that it’s something they’re going to love.What’s your off-stage persona?
I’m the biggest homebody. But I’ve been like this. Nothing about me has changed since I got fame. I never liked to go to clubs. I never liked to go out. I don’t know where that public craziness came from. I was always like a comedian to my friends and family, but in a lot of ways I’m shy. I think people read my shyness as being mean. They misinterpret it. The first and only person who ever called me out for being shy was Wayne.
Do you rehearse those over-the-top face and body animations?
No, I hate rehearsing. I never rehearse what I’m gonna do in a video. It’s just that I have this love-hate relationship with the camera. I wanna please the camera so bad. The perfectionist in my brain is like, “You have to be on.” I always want to feel like I gave everything my all and never, never, never exhibit laziness.
Never rehearsing? The picture becomes more clear….
This being Complex’s 10th Anniversary issue, it seems fitting to look forward to the next 10 years… Where do you think you’ll be in 2022?
In 2022, I’ll definitely be married and I’ll definitely have my two children.
Take a listen to Nicki’s newly released new song with Chris Brown entitled, “Right By My Side”:
