Every rapper has some kind of story, even Nicki Minaj. In a recent interview with Details Magazine, she explains what happened with her father and how he tried to kill Nicki’s mother by setting their house on fire.
Details: Your father set fire to your home when you were a kid in Queens, New York. What happened?
Nicki Minaj: He drank a lot and did drugs, and he would get violent when he did. When he set fire to the house, he was attempting to kill my mother. She got out before it burned all the way down. I’ve always had this female-empowerment thing in the back of my mind—because I wanted my mother to be stronger, and she couldn’t be. I thought, “If I’m successful, I can change her life.”
Details: What can women get away with in hip-hop that men can’t?
Nicki Minaj: I have a lot of freedom to be crazy. I can rap in a London accent, make weird faces, wear spandex, wigs, and black lipstick. I can be more creative than the average male rapper. And I can show my boobs. Guys can’t do that.
Details: As an openly bisexual rapper, do you think hip-hop is getting more gay-friendly?
Nicki Minaj: I think the world is getting more gay-friendly, so hip-hop is too. But it’s harder to imagine an openly gay male rapper being embraced. People view gay men as having no street credibility. But I think we’ll see one in my lifetime.
Details: As younger and younger fans come to your shows, do you feel pressure to tone down the racier elements of your persona?
Nicki Minaj: I do. I’m a role model now. I didn’t know I was gonna have 13-year-old fans, so I’ve tried to change a few things here and there. But I also know that the girls don’t want me to be Miley Cyrus, either.
