After a long wait, Nicki Minaj has finally released the anticipated music videos for her two new tracks, "Chun-Li" and "Barbie Tingz."
To the delight of fans, the 35-year-old released earlier this year her first solo tracks since her last album, in 2014. Both tracks are expected to be included in her still-untitled next album.
Nicki Minaj Is An Icon
The new music videos were released on Friday, May 4, on YouTube. True to its title, the music video for "Barbie Tingz" shows the rapper looking like a doll with several costume changes that range from cotton candy sweet to street high fashion.
The concept of the music video is simple: Minaj with a couple of dancers in front of a white set. The Trinidad-born lyricist, however, is never a bore to watch as she acts like a puppet, flirts with men in suits, and show off that she is a killer on the dance floor.
Minaj co-directed the video with Giovanni Bianco.
Meanwhile, her other hit, "Chun-Li," is a cinematic masterpiece that is almost reminiscent of Wong Kar Wai's big screen repertoire. Although the track was not, in any way, related to the video game character Chun-Li from Street Fighter, Minaj was inspired by the pop culture icon from the way she wears her hair to the music video directed by Steven Klein which has elements from East Asia.
"I knew you'd come," the chart-topping artist recites at the beginning of the video. "Somehow, I just knew you'd find me. Not knowing where I was or when I was coming back sent you crazy."
Nicki Minaj Faces Controversies
While the "Anaconda" rapper is busy preparing for the launch of her next album, she is also currently fighting a series of unrelated new issues that popped up in the past few weeks.
First off, an artist named Isiah Simon is suing Minaj and Universal Music Group for the unauthorized use of his t-shirt design on the rapper's merchandise.
TMZ reports that the record label repurposed a design he made in 2015 of an upside-down heart resembling a bikini top for the artist's own line of shirts. Simon is suing to block the further use of UMG of the design for their own products.
In addition, the drama between Minaj and Cardi B seems to be heating up. While both female rappers insisted that there is no feud between them, Minaj's fanbase is coming for the "Bodak Yellow" rapper who is currently on a break as she reaches the final stage of her pregnancy.
In a new post, Cardi B lashed out and called out fans of Minaj for the hate directed at her unborn child. The post has since been taken down, but a fan was able to keep receipts.
A NICKI MINAJ STAN WISHES HARM ON CARDI B’s BABY pic.twitter.com/lWhOdEDfso — SEAN_#BΔΚ_JACKSON (@_KINGSEANCOURT_) April 25, 2018
Minaj is slated to close the current season of Saturday Night Live on May 19 with host Tina Fey.
