Album Reviews

Album Review: Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday

By Kiki Louya, Staff Writer kiki@livemusicguide.com  On Nov. 22, eccentric hip-hop princess Nicki Minaj put to rest the widespread comparisons to rapstress Lil’ Kim with the release of her debut album Pink Friday, proving once and for all that appearances can be deceiving. Provocative outfits, hard-hitting lyrics and colorful wigs notwithstanding, Minaj may look like a cookie cutter version of the reigning Queen Bee herself. But unlike Kim’s legendary heartbreaker persona, Pink Friday confirms that even the baddest chicks have a softer side. The album, which is packed tough with banging club beats, synth-heavy 80s samples and rhythmic electric guitar, features the same hip-hop bravado as shown on her previous work with Ludacris, Sean Kingston and Lil Wayne’s Young Money. For example, on the intro track “I’m the Best,” Minaj proudly boosts “‘Cause even when my daddy was on crack/ I was crack now the whole album crack/ You ain't even gotta skip a track.” But the self-proclaimed “Black Barbie” scores even bigger when she lets her tough girl guard down and wears her heart on her sleeve.  In fact, on several tracks, including “Save Me” and “Blazing’ featuring Kanye West, Minaj invokes her secret weapon: a surprisingly melodic singing voice. But on “Dear Old Nicki,” an album standout, it’s the message, not the voice that makes the track so powerful. "You was underground/ And I was mainstream/ I live the life now/ That we would daydream" she cleverly raps in a vulnerable letter to her former self about why some internal changes were necessary to make on the road to rap stardom. But hip-hop purists beware: Pink Friday is anything but overly sappy. Even with songs like “Your Love,” which depicts Minaj as a hopeless romantic, the album is able to weave introspective pop tracks with head-to-head battles, pitting Nicki against some of rap’s hottest emcees. Even more surprising is that Minaj holds her own even when up against Drake, willi.i.am and Kanye West, channeling her many alter-egos in a few verses. But on “Roman Revenge,” there is little doubt that she is outshined by Detroit’s own Eminem, who skillfully raps a collection of well-crafted verses with punchy alliteration, leaving Minaj struggling to simply keep pace.  Still, for a debut album Pink Friday does exactly what it set out to do: prove to the world that Nicki can stand on her own two feet without the star power of more established artists propelling her brand forward. More importantly, the album is the first in a while that showcases hip-hop from a strictly female perspective and without the distraction of hyper-sexuality. There are certainly a fair amount of racy lyrics to be heard, but overall Pink Friday is an excellent expression of what it is to be a modern woman: powerful, fanciful, commanding, and lady-like all at the same time.

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