Nicki Minaj talked about new music, marriage, entrepreneurship and everything in between during her hour-long Pollstar Live Q&A on Wednesday (Feb. 5). Her manager Irving Azoff led the conversation at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.
“It’s not my single, because the single will be launched with the visual,” the Queen rapper said of her newly previewed track “Yikes.” “This is a setup song with no video. Please don’t kill me, y’all. You guys asked me to put it out — don’t forget!”
“I feel like albums should be a surprise, sonically, what people can expect,” she added, remaining mostly ambiguous about a potential next project. “But [fans] can expect to feel like, okay, Nicki’s in a good place. That’s what I’ll say about that.”
Minaj also opened up about her past discography, naming “Anaconda,” “Your Love” and “Starships” as songs she regrets recording.
“I wish I had never recorded ‘Anaconda,’” she revealed. “My first ever solo song on Billboard was ‘Your Love.’ To this day, I hate that. I like the video, but I hate the song. I can go on and on. I hate ‘Starships.’ I mean, like, ewww — ‘Starships were meant to fly.’ I was like, why did I do that?”
The Queen Radio host shed a tear when the conversation turned toward Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna, who were tragically killed in a helicopter crash last month.
“See, even right now, I can’t imagine what his wife is feeling, to lose your husband at such a young age, but your child too,” she said, reaching for tissues. “We love you, Kobe, and to your wife and to your family and your friends, we are praying for you guys. …. I’m such an easy crier. I’m a crybaby.”
Looking ahead, Minaj mentioned that children and entrepreneurial pursuits are hopefully in her future, including hair and makeup products and an athletic wear line. She named JAY-Z as an inspiration, as someone who has stayed a prominent figure in hip hop while building an entrepreneurial empire.
“When I see in 10 years, since before I had a dime, I always said I tried to watch what JAY-Z did and how he handled hip hop and entrepreneurship,” she said. “And I always look at him and I take my notes from him. So where you see JAY is right now, that’s what I want to be, in the Nicki Minaj way. I want to still be a staple in rap, but opening doors for new people to not only rap, but to do things in the tech space and stuff like that.”
Minaj most recently teamed up with Meghan Trainor on “Nice to Meet Ya.” See snippets from her interview below.